New York, I Love You
by itshardtostealfatkids
Summary: Kid has left, as per his father's suggestion, to experience life outside of Death City before becoming a full-fledged reaper. Crona, looking to move on, is invited to accompany him when he and the Thompson's move to New York City.
1. Chapter 1

**Hey-oh.**

**So, I've decided that after drawing some Kid and Crona, I want to _write_ some Kid and Crona. Because let's face it, ambiguous gender or not, they're freaking adorable together. Haha, anyways, these are just fund drabbles I guess so I hope you enjoy them (even if I might not update regularly because of projects and Royai. T_T)**

**Also, I'm just using the prompts from the "Kid X Crona 100 Themes Art Challenge" from Deviantart, so away we go!**

**Enjoy!**

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**63. Do Not Disturb**

Moving away from Gallows Mansion had been a particularly interesting change for Kid, who had lived in the spaciously symmetrical estate for all of his life. The house had always been kept tidy, thanks to slew of housekeepers who had aligned things until he was able to do it on his own, and even _after_ Liz and Patty had moved in, the place was always well-maintained. They weren't particularly messy sisters, after all, having grown up with little in the first place.

And so he didn't mind when they accompanied him when he moved to New York City, to get "out to see the world some more," as his father put it, before his duties as a Shinigami beckoned for him to return to Death City. I mean, he wanted to experience living on his own, after all.

Which is why he offered to let Crona accompany him to the big city; he understood the desire to get out away from the DWMA for a while.

Kid twitched as he looked down at the little "_Do Not Disturb_" sign, which had been carelessly tossed onto his pristine hall shelf, utterly destroying the symmetrical design he had worked so hard to construct. Picking up the offending piece of paper, he muttered under his breath.

"So careless! Who would just toss this away like that? It must've been Liz, trying to throw me off again. That woman can be so infuriating. Everyone knows that this goes in the bathroom for when someone needs-."

Kid froze, his body halfway into the bathroom, the "_Do Not Disturb_" sign fallen and forgotten.

Nobody moved. Not the young Shinigami, not the young pink-haired girl who had stepped out of the shower. Eyes were frozen on faces, blood was trickling out of a little reaper nostril, and steam poured between the two, fogging the horrified, bulging eyes.

"Geez, kid, why don't you take a picture, it'll last longer!" a troll-like voice scolded, Ragnarok materializing on Crona's bare back.

As if Ragnarok had woken them from some deep catatonic state, their faces flushed red, their mouths moving a mile a minute.

"_K-Kidwhatareyoudoinginhere? Ineedatowel! You-youjustsawme... IDON'TKNOWHOWTODEALWITHTHIS."_

_"Crona! Iamsosorry! Pleaseforgiveme! Ididn'tknowyouwere-I-Ihadthedisturbancesignand-and -IHAVETOGONOW._"

His hand grappling for the knob, Kid yanked the bathroom door shut, his heart pounding against his chest and his hand clamped over his mouth.

Crona covered her face with her hands, embarrassment coursing through her veins. "Oh no..." she sighed.

"The little pervert was trying to take a peek at you!" Ragnarok hollered.

Her fingers fell from her eyes, scooping up a little slip of cardboard that had stuck to the wet floor. "What is it? What is it?" the black-blood monster questioned.

"It's a 'do not disturb' sign," Crona said slowly. She frowned.

Ragnarok shook his head. "What a lame excuse to be a little perv."

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**Shitty ending, I know. But I've decided I'm going to make these all part of a drabble-y progressive story about them living together and getting together and biz so. :) I hope you liked it!**

**Reviews are always ap'urciated. ^_^**

**Peace, L. **


	2. 83 Heal

**Hi! So, here we go, no lengthy introduction. ^_^**

**Enjoy!**

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**83. Heal**

A week had passed since the shower incident.

Neither Kid nor Crona had brought up the issue, but the refusal of confronting one another had sort of...gotten in the way. When they passed each another in the hallway, it became a stand-off, both getting jumbled and afraid, until Crona eventually squealed an apology and set herself against the wall until he left. They never spoke to one another at dinner or breakfast, or remained in the same room alone, and, Death forbid, reach for the remote at the same time. Hell, they wouldn't even _look_ at each other.

And, quite frankly, it was annoying the crap out of Liz.

She could handle the timidness- in fact, she expected it from Crona, but from Kid? Never- and she could handle stammering, but what she could absolutely _not_ handle was Kid's new behavior whenever the pinkette was in the room. Which was nearly always.

Liz's eye twitched at the thought. "Hey, Patti?"

"Yeah, big sis?" the blonde asked, looking up from her colorings.

"Have you noticed Kid's been acting kind of strange lately...well, stranger than usual?"

Patti laughed childishly. "Kid's been acting like Crona!"

Liz sighed, adding the last stroke on her fingertip as she finished her manicure. "Yeah, I've noticed... why do you think that is?"

"I don't know, big sis," Patti singsonged.

"The tension's been killing me!" the older sister griped. "Ugh, I need to get them out together..." A mischievous smile peeled across her face. "Say, Patti? Know what I'm in the mood for?"

"Mm-mm," the younger girl shook her head.

"Some world famous Pizza."

Patti nodded her head, clapping happily at her sister's plan.

"Please, Kid?"

"Elizabeth, no."

"Kid?"

"No."

"Ki-i-i-i-i-i-i-i-i-i-i-i-!"

"Fine!" the young shinigami huffed. "Where is this pizza place?"

"The address is right here," Liz grinned, handing him a slip of paper. "All you have to do is pick it up."

"But..." He frowned at the sheet, which Liz had taken special care to print symmetrically, so he had absolutely nothing to nit-pick at. "Don't they have pizza delivery boys for a reason?"

"Kid, you need to get out of the house," Liz deadpanned, turning him by his shoulders and nudging him towards the door. Almost as if it were an afterthought, she added, "And take Crona with you."

Kid's stomach nearly collapsed. "W-w-why do I-I have-?"

"You've both been cooped up in this apartment for days," the weapon reasons. "You both need some air and exercise. Crona!"

The pinkette poked her head out of her room. "Y-yeah, Liz?"

"Go with Kid to pick up the pizza?" Liz asked, noting the fierce red blush that enflamed the witch's cheeks.

"I don't, uh, K-Kid doesn't need help, does he?"

"Of course he does?" Liz laughed, clapping a visibly shaken Kid on the shoulder. She lowered her voice conspiratorially. "We ordered _a lot _of pizza."

"W-well, if you n-need help, Kid..." Crona began, inching out of her bedroom.

_Stop being nervous! Oh, god, I'm nothing but garbage. I should've knocked. This is terrible, terrible, terrible_...

He cleared his throat. "I-if you don't mind, Crona."

She nodded her head. "Okay."

As soon as they were cleared of the threshold, Liz threw the door shut and bolted it behind them, grinning maliciously to herself.

Kid dug his hands into his pockets, beginning his trek down the staircase. Crona stared nervously at the door, wondering if it was too late to beg Liz to let her back in.

"Coming?" his voice echoed as he stood on the bottom stair, his eyes avoiding her own.

"Oh, y-yeah," she nodded, running to catch up with him.

The pair walked in silence, taking each block with the expectancy of some apology and ending it with the realization that they were both to chicken to do anything.

Crona felt a little drip on her nose, then her shoulders and hands. She looked up into the overcast sky, eyebrows arched in worry. "It's raining..." she murmured.

"We'd better hurry then," Kid said, a tiny smile on his face. He'd always liked the way she looked at little things with awe. Not even their previous debacle could change that.

As the heavens truly opened and a downpour unleashed itself unto New York City, the two sprinted for the pizza parlor, cramming themselves into the already jam-packed building.

"Why're there s-so many p-eople?"

"Must be the dinner rush?" he suggested, shrugging.

Crona fidgeted as she stood beside Kid, waiting for their turn at the counter. She wondered rather worriedly what he thought of her after their little encounter. Or if he was mad at her for letting Ragnarok call him names. Or if he was considering kicking her out of the apartment. Or...or...

"'Scuse me," a stray voice apologized as they accidentally knocked a very deep-in-thought Crona, who lost her balance and crashed against the shinigami.

"K-k-k-kid! I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I didn't-!"

His voice caught in his throat as he braced them both against the frosty soda refrigerator, the cool air not doing much to help the heat in his face. She clung to his jacket trying to keep herself on her feet, looking up at him apologetically, her cheeks painted with a pink that only accompanied embarrassment and face dotted with rain that had clung to her face and hair. To put it plainly, Kid found her undeniably adorable.

He cleared his throat, nodding his head and helping them both to stand up straight. "It's quite alright, Crona."

She retreated into herself as they separated. "You...you're not mad?"

"Not at all," he assured her.

She visibly relaxed, mirroring the shy smile on his own face.

Still, something nagged at Kid: the necessity to get around what had, er, _occurred_ between them. He stole his nerves-for goodness sake, he fought evil kishins and withces!-and uttered the name he'd been afraid of for the past week.

"Crona?" he asked shakily.

"Yes?"

The second her eyes fell on him, he wanted to run. "I, um, I just...wanted to apologize for walking in on you...uh, while you were showering..."

She looked at him rather pitifully. "So...does that mean...you're _not_ going to kick me out?"

"Why would I kick you out?" he sweat-dropped.

"For not using the...the sign?"

"Oh," he recalled, shaking his head. "No, no, of course not." He let fly a little laugh. "Crona, you're welcome to stay as long as you'd like. I was just hoping you'd forgive me for invading your privacy like that."

"It's alright," she told him quietly. "I just wish Ragnarok hadn't been so rude."

Sensing his name, the black-blooded fiend spewed from her back, startling several on-lookers.

"I'm not the rude one! He busted in right after you took off your clothes! Got a good look at you, too!"

"Ragnarok, quiet down!" Crona commanded weakly. "People are staring at us."

"Let 'em stare at us all they want!" the bulbous beast shouted, swinging his tiny fist as Kid. "I'll be quiet when this little punk apologizes."

"He already apologized!" Crona argued.

"And what are you looking at?!" Ragnarok shouted, looking at a nearby bystander.

Crona didn't know how to deal with being in the center of such attention, so she pretended she was elsewhere, covering her face to hide from the eyes that were staring at her.

"Hey," Kid's voice called, his eyes set on Ragnarok.

"_What__?_" he crooned.

"If you go away until we get to the apartment, I will personally cook you something delicious," Kid bribed.

"Uh-uh!" the little thing swatted. "You're cooking's no good! I'd rather chew on some of Crona's socks for a meal!"

The shinigami sighed. "Fine, then, I will convince _Liz_ to cook you something delicious when we get home."

"Deal!" Ragnarok squawked, laughing in victory and returning to his host's body.

Satisfaction finally his he leaned forward, trying to catch a glimpse of Crona's face through her hands. "Are you alright?" he asked, noting the pink spreading into her ears.

"Oh!" she gasped, uncovering herself. "Y-yes. Now that Ragnarok's gone inside."

"Good."

As they waited in line, an airy feeling replaced the heavy terror that had burdened each of them.

Crona peered at Kid out of the corner of her eye. She wanted to ask him, _So...this means we're friends again, right_?

Quickly she looked away, grinning to herself.

She wasn't _that_ brave.

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**I can't wait to actually develop their relationship further. -_- Until then...**

**Well, I hope it's soon. XD**

**Peace, L.**


	3. 10 Breath Again

**Hey! Thanks for reading, guys! :D Here, we go; diving right in.**

**Enjoy!**

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**10. Breath Again**

Sometimes Kid had to remind himself to breath again.

Usually, it occurred when he was admiring something symmetrical, soaking in the perfection and beauty of it. The curious thing was, this time around, he was looking at something the farthest thing from symmetrical.

As Crona laughed quietly at one of Patti's low-brow jokes at the dinner table, he found himself smiling as well, though he was too entranced to notice. He slowly picked at the dinner on his plate, watching her as she nodded at something Liz was saying, though he didn't care to listen to what it was.

It was odd. Kid had always been a stickler for detail, so why hadn't he noticed the the blueish tint to her eyes? Or the way her uneven hair actually _complimented_ her face, rather than detracting from her beauty? Or the little dimple near her lip-oh wait, that was a crumb. Her tongue darted out to lick it away as she listened to some story the sisters were relaying, causing a strange sensation to shoot through Kid's stomach.

Now that he thought about it, there was a lot about Crona he had never paid much mind to. Her voice, for one. It was so...soft yet strong. Or the way her dress clung very neatly to her body, her hips.

Her eyes, she must have sensed someone looking at her, moved to pass over him, but they stuck, her eyebrows shooting into her hairline in surprise, her cheeks darkening at his unwarranted attention.

Kid shook his head, half-heartedly cursing himself for staring.

_I shouldn't be thinking about her like that. I'm almost certain she wouldn't be alright with that. What's this feeling? Why do my lungs feel so tight? Oh...right._

He took a deep breath.

Sometimes, Kid forgot to breath.

* * *

**A little drabble. All of these, with a few flashback, reminiscent exceptions, are going to be chronological so. ^_^ Hope you liked it, even if it was short.**

**Peace, L. **


	4. 12 Insanity

**Hi there! Thanks for reading and reviewing and biz. It means a lot. ^_^**

**So, on with the show!**

**Enjoy!**

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**12. Insanity**

Crona clutched her hair tighter against her head, that familiar feeling of dread washing over her.

This happened sometimes, the madness, the lingering effects of being experimented on and tormented for years and years. From time to time, she couldn't help it. She went a little mad.

Everything was going too fast it seemed, alone on the bathroom floor. The cold white tiles were too cold, too white, too blaring and bright for her to look at. The sink ran on full-blast as did the tub faucet, both rushing like waterfalls in her ears, echoing and resonating in her head, the _shhh_ of it sounding more like television static than anything else. She rocked as she sat against the cabinet, her voice quivering as she looked around, feeling dizzy and terrified. Her lungs felt heavy and full of nothing. She couldn't breath. She wasn't breathing.

The hyperventilating began and she clutched at her hair, pulling on the pink strands for _something_ solid, _something _sturdy enough to hold her upright, from falling into a maddening abyss again.

_I don't want to go crazy! _she panicked. _I won't go back. I won't, I won't, I won't. I betrayed them. They hate me, they hate me. And I can't even go back to Medusa. _

"Crona..." a soft voice called, striking fear into the witch. Crona's rocking ceased, her eyes bugging out of her head.

"N-no..." Crona whispered, as she heard her name echo in her ear, her mother's voice hissing like the snakes that swam in the woman's body. "You're not really here. You're gone...you're gone..."

As much as she tried to convince herself, she could still see her mother's face, still twisted into that snarl. She could smell it: the blood. The blood of the people she'd killed and the souls she had devoured. She could see their blurry faces. The men, the women, the children, every one of them. The metallic scent clung to the air, pinching her nose with a desire for revenge.

"S-stay away," Crona ordered, sticking her face against her knees, covering her head. "I'm sorry! I'm sorry!"

The dead were coming back, their screams echoing.

"I'm sorry!"

The screams, her mother, the rushing water, the spattering of blood on stones, the cry of the bunny she took the life of when she was a mere child, screaming, screeching, whispers, laughter, fire raging, metal slicing, stones, spattering, mother, cackling, rushingragingwhisperingmotherwhimpercryspatterspat terspitrunningterrorterrorvengancelaughterfirewash ingrushingscreeching.

"I'm sorry! _I'm sorry!_" she shouted, covering her ears, wishing it would go away, wishing she could forget the dead ad their blood-spattered faces.

Screaming apologies at them got her nowhere; they were always too loud, too forceful, to hellbent to leave her be.

"I'm sorry!"

"Crona! Crona! Crona!" her mother's voice ordered, ordered her to kill, to obey, to follow.

"No!"

"Crona!"

"Go away!"

"Crona!"

"Leave! Me! Alone!"

"Crona! Crona, it's me! Kid!"

"Ah..." the small sound escaped her lips, as she looked up. The feeling of the hand on her shoulder was too real to be a vengeful face.

Worry permeated from his golden eyes as he scooted closer on the floor in front of her. "Crona, please, are you alright?"

"I...I-I-I..."

The voices had stopped, the rushing water now a mere babbling in the background. The tears began to form in her eyes, her lip quivering in fright and embarrassment.

"I-I..." she stuttered.

Without a word, he slid closer, enveloping her withdrawn body in his arms. He felt so real. His voice was so present and it didn't scream. His blood didn't splat against the pavement. His body wasn't cold or lifeless. As he held her head to his chest, she felt his heart beating in her ear, the warmth radiating off of the young reaper. His hands held her close, his thumb rubbing reassuringly.

She cried, she sobbed, hiccoughing into his neat white shirt.

Many a time, when she had begun to calm down, she tried to apologize for him finding her like this, but as she opened her mouth, the tears returned, drowning out her every word.

"K-k-k-," she began, trying to speak for the fifth time in a row, only to have it pour out in an incoherent mess.

"Sh," he shushed lightly. "It's going to be alright, Crona."

"I..."

Finally, after one more wave racked her entire body, the salty water pouring down her cheeks, she quieted down, her voice dissipating into a few stray whimpers.

Crona pulled away from Kid's chest and his fingers went to wick away the tears on her face.

"I'm s-sorry," she apologized quietly.

"What for?" he asked lightly, a tiny smile on his face. "We've handled much worse than this, haven't we?"

Her heart swelled as she nodded her head, his hand tucking a long piece of hair behind her ear.

Hesitantly, he ventured, "Would you like to talk about it?"

She thought a moment. "No," she murmured, shaking her head. "I...feel b-better."

Kid crawled to his feet, sighing lightly. "Sometimes crying it the best way to make yourself feel better." Extending a hand to the pinkette, he added, "Liz and Patti aren't home. Would you like to watch a movie?"

Sniffling, Crona nodded, tentatively reaching for his hand and allowing herself to be helped to her feet by the shinigami.

"C-can we watch a Disney m-movie?"

"Of course."

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**And so their relationship continues. **

**I JUST WANT TO WRITE SOME LOVEY-DOVEY AND/OR SMUT BIZ. ITS KILLING ME. XD **

**See you next time!**

**Peace, L.**


	5. 2 Love

**Hey!**

**Thanks for reading guys. And for the follows. And biz. ^_^ **

**Enjoy!**

* * *

**2. Love**

_Love_.

The pinkette examined the word a little closer, pressing her nose further into the book.

Love? She'd heard of it before. At least, she thought she did. Like when she would talk with Maka about Soul. The word came up quite a bit then. Or when Kid talked about symmetry. Or Ragnarok with Tsubaki's cooking.

But what did it mean? It was a good thing, she thought. At least, that's what she had inferred from the people around her who spoke of love.

She shut the book she had been reading, looking around the lofty, spacious library. Kid had taken her along on his trip to look for an old book- something to do with some magical ancient artifact, she thought- to the city library. She had plucked some interestingly covered book up off the shelf, neglecting to read the title and just dove in to keep herself occupied.

So, what was this love thing anyway?

Crona cautiously tucked the book under arm, scooting away from the long wooden table she had sat herself at.

_There's got to be one around here somewhere_... she thought as she wandered along, disappearing in the towering, mountainous shelves of books.

"Hey," Raganarok's voice whined as he morphed outside of the witch's body. "Where're we going?"

"Sh, Ragnarok, this is a library," Crona replied absently, her eyes busy scanning the shelves.

"Library shmibrary," he grumbled. "What the hell are you looking for anyways? It've bad enough you pulled me out of the apartment before dinner time..."

"I'm looking for something..." she trailed off, grabbing at her arm, bunching the fabric of the sleeve up in her fingers.

_There!_

Setting the now uninteresting novel aside, she ran her fingers over the large, roughly-bound blue book, faded from spending years and years on the shelf.

She lugged it off and into her arms, taking it back to the table and looking over the gold lettering.

"Dic...diction...hey! What the hell do you need a dictionary for, you stupid girl?"

Several stern shushes and stares aimed themselves at Crona and Ragnarok, the younger girl cowering as they met her ears.

Throwing the cover back, she flipped through the pages, searching for what she was looking for. That word...

"Love," she whispered, her finger landing over the black lettering.

"There're alot, aren't there?" the demon sword asked, only mildly interested.

Crona nodded. "_'Strong affection for another arising out of kinship or personal ties_'..." That sounded like her and Kid.

Her cheeks suddenly flushed. Why would _that_ be the first place she went to? Love...she didn't _love_ Kid, did she? Sure, she _liked_him; they were friends, weren't they? The heat still clinging to her face, she read on.

'_Attraction based on sexual_-' She slammed her hand over the print, embarrassed in the words before her. She didn't feel sexual desire for Kid!...did she? What'd that even feel like? She could've felt it before, couldn't she, without even knowing it? Right?

Timidly, her fingers moved away and she continued.

'_Unselfish loyal and benevolent concern for the good of another_.' That seemed nice to her. '_Affection based on admiration, benevolence, or common interest_.'

She thought. Did she and Kid have any common interest?They made dinner together sometimes. She shook her head. That probably wasn't an interest. They watched movies together. In fact, it was usually a war when the apartment set up for movie night, between Liz and Kid. Even though she never voiced her opinion, she usually desired to watch what Kid suggested. And she always enjoyed the books he let her read off the bookshelf in his bedroom...

And admiration. She admired Kid. Without question. He was smart and brave, kind and thoughtful, wise and responsible...what _wasn't _to admire, besides his obsessive-compulsive tendencies. But affection...

She quickly flipped through the text, reading over the definitions.

'_Affection: a moderate feeling or emotion__.' _Crona frowned. That wasn't helpful.

Timidly, she looked around to be sure no one was watching or spying, to make sure Ragnarok was tucked away out of boredom as she flicked back to the 'S's.

'_Sexual desire_: _a desire for sexual intimacy.' _

_'Desire: to express a wish for_.'

'_Intimacy: something of a personal or private nature.'_

__Tiredly, she turned back to the original word, the four-letters that had her jumping around the dictionary, her face, all the while, growing redder and redder.

'_Love: Strong affection for another arising out of kinship or personal ties; attraction based on sexual desire; unselfish loyal ad benevolent concern for the good of another; affection based on admiration, benevolence, or common interest; a god or personification of love; an amorous episode; the sexual embrace.'_

"Crona?"

Instinctively, the pinkette slammed the book shut, the thud echoing throughout the library. She ignored the annoyed murmurs that emanated from the people around her.

She stared up at the shinigami. "Yes?"

He quirked his eyebrow. "Are you alright?"

"J-just fine," she stuttered. Her eyes found the books in his hands. "A-are you ready to go?"

"Hm? Yes," he nodded, grinning at her. "Come on," Kid waved, his smile infecting her. "Let's go home."

"O-okay."

He never asked her why she was looking up the definition of 'love' and she never spoke about it.

* * *

**Hoped you like it! I'm trying to get to my relationship stuff but -_- Stupid chronology. **

**Thanks for reading, space cowboys.**

**Peace, L. **


	6. 67 Playing the Melody

**Hey thar! Hoped you guys liked my last one. Now that I have all of these planned out in an order that (hopefully)makes sense, I'll hopefully be able to keep the every-day pace. -_-**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

**67. Playing the Melody**

Liz strolled into the living room of the apartment, her curiosity peaked at the sight of her sister pressed against the glass windows, a low, stifled giggled escaping her throat.

The older pistol sighed. "Patti," she droned, joining her sister at the window, "you aren't spying on the neighbors again, are you?"

"Uh-uh," the littler one said, shaking her head. "I'm waiting for the others to get here!"

"They should be back any minute now," Liz spoke, looking up at the clock on the wall.

"Here! They're here!" Patti clapped suddenly. Liz pressed her face against the window pane, peering down.

_Yep_, she thought. _There it is_. The familiar blue head of hair that commanded the presence of everyone in his vicinity, as well as the heads of the rest of their friends. _This place is going to be crazy..._ Liz sighed, waiting for the commotion to tumble in through front door. She smiled. _But it'll be fun. _

Moments later, their voices could be heard on the other side of the door, the locks clicking and the door swinging free of it's threshold.

"Black Star has arrived!" a familiar voice shouted before the Star Clan child flew through the air, his face contorted into one similar to a paper dragon they had all spotted down in Chinatown. He landed on the center of the floor rather anticlimactically, looking around, his eyes falling upon the sisters at the window. "What? No applause?"

"Nice to see you, too, Black Star," Liz waved as Patti laughed and insisted he do it again.

The others followed in with bags and suitcases, small, but enough to fit belongings for a few days.

"Liz! Patti!" Maka called, laughing and running to hug them. "We've missed you guys!"

Liz laughed, embracing the shorter girl. "We've missed you guys, too. Being in New York, away from everyone, is so strange."

"Welcome to the Big Apple!" Patti shouted, before grabbing hold of Soul's collar threateningly, her voice lowering to a growl. "Don't cross me or you'll be sorry."

"Heh, yeah, it's great to see you, too, Patti," the white-haired boy deadpanned.

"W-what's going on out..." Crona's eyes widened at the sight of everyone in their living room as she stepped from her bedroom, her face a mesh between confusion and happiness.

"Crona!" Maka squealed, lunging at the pinkette. "I've missed you so much! How've you been? Do you like New York?"

"I-I...uh...?" Crona stammered, her eyes sweeping over the room in a panic.

"Everyone was coming to stay this weekend, remember, Crona?" Liz reminded lightly.

"O-oh," Crona stuttered, returning Maka's embrace. "W-was that th-this weekend?"

"We all get to spend the next few days together," Maka said, pulling away from the demon sword.

"R-really?" Crona beamed...or, as much as Crona _could _beam.

"Uh-huh," the Albarn girl nodded.

Ragnarok leapt from the confines of Crona's back, nearly drooling at the sight of Tsubaki. "Please tell me the tall one's going to cook for us? I can't stand the crap they keep feeding me here!"

Tsubaki laughed nervously. "I'm sure we can figure something out."

"Well, now that we've all gotten reacquainted," Soul smirked, now free from Patti's clutches, "who's hungry?"

-interruption-

They were invited to a neat little restaurant not too far from the apartment, one with darkened rooms and a grand black piano situated and unused in the corner.

Once Maka spotted it between forkfuls of dinner, she nearly choked and begged Soul to play just one song.

Their friends crowded around the piano, waiting for the white-haired boy to begin playing his dark melody. As he began, every note pounding through the air and through everyone's bodies, Kid noticed something moving out of the corner of his eye. Little fingertips tapping along the black edge of the piano back. He followed the fingers up the black sleeve, to the body they belonged to: a certain pink-haired girl who seemed so focused on the music, he thought she might suddenly fall unconscious of something.

He'd fallen into strange habit of watching her from time to time, so out of the corner of his eye, he watched her fingers tip-toe around, her ears perk with every strong note that played.

And just like it had started, it was over. Her fingers ceased moving and he was brought out of his trance, where everyone clapped for Soul and his undeniable talent, including the restauranteurs doting the place.

"You could play another if you'd like," the hostess suggested hopefully.

"Nah," Soul grinned, flashing his shark-like teeth. "I promised my friends one song, and that's all they're gettin'."

The group let out a disappointed murmur in agreement, leaving the check on the table.

As Death pushed his chair in, an idea blossomed in his head. "Crona?" he called as she moved towards the door. "Would you like to help me with something a moment?"

"Is it symmetry-related?" Maka deadpanned.

"Yes," Kid nodded.

"Kid, she doesn't have to help you-"

"I-I-It's okay, Maka," Crona interrupted, smiling reassuringly at her firend. "I don't m-mind."

"Okay," the blonde nodded softly. "We'll meet you guys outside."

Crona walked to the table, her face red with his sudden attention, as the question _W-why did he ask m-me_? whirled around in her head.

"W-what did you need help w-with?" she stammered, looking not at his face but at the dirty silverware still present at their table.

"When Soul was playing the piano," he began, "what was it you were doing with your fingers?"

Her head snapped up. "Uh...uh..."

He quirked his head. "Do you know how to play?"

"P-play?"

"Piano."

"Oh..." She shook her head. "N-no. Well, I've never t-tried."

After a moment of thought, he took hold of her hand, leading her to follow him.

"K-kid, w-w-what are you d-?"

"I'd like to see you play," he smiled over his shoulder. "Or try, rather."

"O-oh, b-b-but I...I d-dont know..." she stuttered, her body visibly shaking. What if she was terrible? What if Kid laughed at her?

"Please?" he asked once more. She blushed furiously at the next phrase that came tumbling out of his mouth. "It's only me."

"I-I-I..."

"I'm sorry," he apologized rather quickly. "I shouldn't put you on the spot like that-."

"No," she stated loudly. "I-I'll try."

She mentally cursed herself as she made her way towards the piano bench, sitting herself down on the cushy seat and running a finger over the polished keys. Soul had made it seem so easy...

"Do you know any songs?" Kid asked, taking a seat beside her.

She shook her head.

"I know one," he said, placing a few fingers on the keys in front of him, and playing 'Mary had a Little Lamb.'

"I've heard that one before," she smiled quietly.

"Why don't you give it a try?" he wondered.

Very cautiously, she placed her fingers over the keys, pressing down and gaining a handful of low and high notes, all of which sounded surprisingly beautiful together. She moved her hand, one to the other, picking up speed as she got more confident with what she was doing.

She paused, looking at the keys thoughtfully.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"I...want to t-try something..." she murmured, her brows knit in concentration, as they had been when she was listening to Soul's piece.

Slowly, Crona began to play the notes experimentally, touching them as if they would electrocute her if she were to press the wrong one.

_E, e flat...e, eflat...e...b...d,c...a._

She smiled at what she had played, and she looked up through her bangs at the young shinigami beside her.

"Crona, you just..." Kid shook his head. "How did you play it so quickly?"

"I-I've heard that one before, too," she shrugged, rubbing her arm bashfully.

"That was Beethoven," Kid remarked. Scooting closer, he urged her to play it once more.

_E, e flat, e, e flat, e, b, d, c, a. _

"Crona, if you would be comfortable with it," Kid proposed, "would you mind teaching it to me?"

"O-oh, y-you want m-m-me t-to...?"

She pressed the E key, drawing back to let him press it himself.

"And th-then you move up here," she pointed, and he followed.

"Then y-you do it again."

He did.

"Then here again...and then h-here."

"Here?"

"Ah..." she carefully pointed to the key beside the one his finger was on, her face heating up at their proximity. "And then t-to this k-key...and then h-here and here."

"I think I've got it," he said rather optimistically, trying his hand at playing the beginning notes.

He only missed one note, before they decided to join the others outside.

As they made for the door, Crona grabbed Kid's arm, making him freeze. "Uh...p-please don't tell the others?"

"But, Crona, that was amazing," Kid tried to reason.

She shook her head fervently. "P-please?"

A tiny smile played on his face. He couldn't help or control it; it always happened around her. "Of course."

"Took you long enough," Black Star groaned now that he final members of their party had joined them outside the restaurant.

"Yeah, what were you guys doing in there?" Liz pried.

Crona froze up, her body tensing. What was she supposed to do? Lie? Oh no, she hadn't thought about this. She couldn't tell the others! She didn't want to take away from Soul being the "Piano Man" or anything. And she didn't want the attention! What was-

"Crona was helping me fix the displays on the wall in there," Kid stated nonchalantly, fixing the jacket on his shoulders. "They were all hideously unsymmetrical. She helped me correct it."

"You're so weird," Black Star rolled his eye. Leaping into the air, he began to run down the sidewalk. "Come on, guys! The night is still young!"

"Black Star!" Tsubaki shouted as everyone ran to catch up with him. "Wait up!"

* * *

**So! Crona can play piano? Eh, it seemed like a cute idea at the beginning but. -_- Oh well. ^_^**

**Hoped you like it! Thanks for reading!**

**Peace, L. **


	7. 40 Rated

**Hey-o! **

**Ah, nothing much to say here, besides thanks to Don'tletmadnesswin321 and kawaiicrona for reviewing. **

**Just hope you guys enjoy the story! ^_^ **

**(And reviews are always appreciated...and are motivational...just sayin'.)**

**OH! And side note, this story takes place immediately after the last one. Same night!**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

**40. Rated**

"Heh heh, how about _this _one?" Black Star asked, his voice teasing and taunting.

Everyone twitched.

They had somehow wondered far enough from Kid's apartment, away from the "decent" street he resided on, and landed themselves in front of a seedy-looking building with a sign illuminated overhead, reading 'XXX.'

"Black Star, come on," Maka scolded. "Don't be such a pervert."

"Come on, Maka," Soul nudged, flashing a toothy grin. "It could be fun."

"Don't get a nosebleed, Soul."

"I don't know about this, guys..." Tsubaki drew.

"Liz? Patti?" Maka asked, turning towards the sisters.

"Let's go! Let's go!" Patti cheered.

Liz sighed. "It's not like it's anything we haven't seen before," the older girl relented.

"Kid?" Maka asked, hoping for the shinigami to side with her.

He shrugged. "You are the guests...though I can't say I'm particularly comfortable with this sort of thing."

"THAT WAS A YES IN MY BOOK! YAHOOOO!" Black Star shouted, garnering unwanted attention from city-goers.

Crona quirked her head, staring at the gaudily hot pink light. "Uh..."

Maka's eyes brightened. Surely Crona wouldn't want to go inside this perv-fest! "Crona!" the blonde nearly shrieked.

The blue-haired god wanna-be interrupted. "Are you in or are you out Crona? Huh? Ready for some real, live entertainment?"

"Uh, uh, I-I..." Crona stared at sign, fidgeting with her fingers. "I-I don't s-see why n-not?"

"YAHOO! BLACK STAR PREVAILS AGAIN!" the boy screamed, slinging his arm around Crona's shoulder. "You're the best girl or guy a god could ask for!"

"I-I'm a-," Crona began only for Black Star to run away, throwing back the doors of the 'XXX' establishment.

Crona turned to Kid as they all headed after the meister. "D-does he really th-think I'm a b-boy?"

"Does it matter? It's _Black Star_," Kid joked. "But his idiocy doesn't surprise me. What _does _ surprise me is that you'd be able to deal with a place like this."

"W-what do you mean?"

Kid shot her a curious look. "Crona...you _do_ know what's in here, don't you?"

Crona shook her head.

"It's rated X, you know," he tried to lead.

"W-what's that mean?" Crona wondered. She had only heard of movie ratings. Were they going to a movie?

"Oh, dear..." Kid trailed off, looking rather defeated. He held the door back for Crona, stating, "I don't know if this is such a good idea..."

"W-why, what's-?"

Crona nearly passed out upon entering the building.

Saying the place was seedy was a compliment. The 'XXX' had the carpeted floors ripped from the vans of seventies porn stars, with black stages that jutted out into the audience. Booths lined the walls, with cheesy pin-up model pictures framed and signed on the walls. A bar sat along the far wall with a topless bartender mixing martini's. And the women on the stage...

"W-w-w-w-what?" Crona stammered, her eyes not knowing what too land on. Everything was either nude or flashy or gaudy.

"Hubba-hub," Ragnarok shouted, taking in an eyeful. "I like it here!"

"It reeks of guys like my Papa and desperation," Maka deadpanned.

"I-I..." Crona finally resolved to shut her eyes. _We shouldn't be here!_ she thought. _Don't people get into trouble for this sort of thing?_

The demon sword felt a hand clasp her shoulder, making her leap out of her skin. Kid looked at her with a face wrought with concern. "Are you alright?"

"I-I...uh..." Her cheeks flared up, her eyes glued to her feet. _Look at where we are! Surrounded by-by... naked people! It's like when I read the dictionary! _Her heart nearly punched her ribcage. _I completely forgot about that! _The words "sexual desire" bolstered themselves across her brain. A bit louder than she meant to, she looked him in the eye and said, "I DON'T KNOW HOW TO DEAL WITH THIS."

"Ah," he nodded. Kid looked around at their friends, some of whom had already been sucked in by the lustful atmosphere. "Would you like to wait outside then?"

His eyes were so..._kind_. He seemed so unbothered by her; Crona's cheeks began to heat up for an entirely different reason.

"W-with-?"

"Crona!" Maka called, latching on to the pinkette. "I'm waiting outside. Want to go get some fresh air?"

"A-ah...s-sure," Crona nodded.

"Great," Maka quipped. "Have fun, Kid."

Kid sighed, watching the booth his friends shoved themselves into. He stood by the booth, crossing his arms and watching the woman that looked suspiciously akin to that magical cat Blair swing herself around the pole.

_She has very symmetrical assets_, the thought off-handedly. _Even with such symmetrically, I imagine it takes a large amount of confidence to go up there. I wonder how Crona would handle it..._

He mentally slapped himself. _Wha...why would I even think about that? _Still the words inside of his head conjured up some rather interesting images...

"Kid!" Soul's voice cut through the boy's imagination swiftly.

"Ki-i-i-id!" Patti beckoned. "Come on! We're gonna order!"

"Stop being such a loser and come sit with us!" Liz added.

"Yes, yes, settled down," he drew. "I'm coming."

Before he sat, he made sure to wick away the blood that had began to trickle out of his nose.

* * *

**Tee-hee. Kid is a pervert. :3 I luff it. **

**I hope you guys are enjoying this biz! Reviews and feedback and stuff are appreciated, so feel free. **

**Peace, L. **


	8. 13 Misfortune

**Hey guys! **

**Thanks for reviewing and reading, it makes my day. ^_^ Thanks to Rinakshimi and****Don'tletmadnesswin321 also!**

**So, this one was going to be less eventful, more thoughtful but I'll save it for later...when I actually have an idea for it. XD**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

**13. Misfortune**

Crona rolled out of bed, rubbing the sand out of her eyes left behind by the wizard Patti called the Sandman, and stretching her arms high over her head.

They hadn't returned home until five in the morning, after pulling a Black Star who had eaten himself sick with cheap, strip club wings from the 'XXX.' On the way back to Kid's apartment, Liz had forced everyone to stop at a convenience store to pick up some little things for the kitchen pantry. Though it was debatable, Black Star insisted she had picked them out on an agonizingly slow place on purpose.

Crona held her pillow to her chest as she sat on the edge of her bed.

She could still feel so much from last night. The fatigue after walking around for so long, so late; the embarrassment that seared her cheeks when she entered the 'XXX' building; the warmth sitting beside Kid at the piano gave her.

A knock sounded on the door, interrupting her reminiscing on the night that had taken place just a few hours ago.

"C-coming," she stated before throwing the door back.

"Morning, Crona," Maka said rather happily, combing her fingers through her hair. Crona envied how pretty Maka was, even so early in the morning with barely any sleep.

"Morning," the pinkette smiled.

"Come on," the young mesiter said, grabbing hold of the pinkette's hand. "Let's go wake up the others."

The two crept into the living room, where everyone who didn't live there was sprawled out on the decorative carpet, draped in blankets and quilts, snuggling with pillows and stray arms. Crona found it very peaceful to watch her friends sleep so soundly.

Too bad Maka decided to disrupt that peace.

As the blankets were ripped into the air and the blonde paraded around rather boisterously, Crona stood on the sidelines and watched. Black Star was busy shouting profanity at the Albarn girl while Soul grumpily wrapped the pillow around his ears and tried to tune the noise out when Crona felt someone sweep up behind her.

"What the hell are they yelling about so early in the morning? Don't they know it's annoying?"

Crona nearly yelped as she turned to see Kid behind her, appearing like an apparition.

_S-someone needs to put a bell on him_, she thought idly.

It wasn't so much his sudden presence that shook her, but rather the state he was in. It wasn't enough that he had a rather attractive head of bed-head, or that his gold eyes still had a sheen of sleep to them, or that his shirt sat in his hand rather than on his torso...

Oh, wait. No, no that was enough.

Crona's eyes flew to her feet. "K-kid, uh..." The pinkette attempted to pull down the hem of her nightgown in the most subtle was possible, feeling that the already long garment was suddenly too short for public eye.

To her relief, he wrangled his shirt over his head, fixing the collar as he scolded the now fist-fighting living room guests.

Once everything has settled down and Tsubaki and Liz had brewed up a pot of tea, another debate began over what to have for breakfast.

"There's a little bakery down the road," Liz proposed.

"I think I saw a place that sells bagels somewhere..." Tsubaki threw in.

"Hey guys," Patti interjected, brandishing a yellow and red brochure. "How about _this_?"

Kid took it in his hand, quirking an eyebrow.

"Chinese food?"

-interruption-

"Tell me why we're here again," Liz groaned, leaning across the blue table cloth.

Their party was alone in 'Chopstick Around,' the little Chinese restaurant that always left those take-out brochures hanging on their front door knob. It was only nine in the morning, after all, and not many people went out in search of Chinese cuisine for breakfast.

"We couldn't agree on anywhere else?" Maka shrugged, leafing through the menu.

"This better be better than the crap we ate at the club last night," Black Star grumbled.

"The food wasn't so bad," Soul reasoned. "You just stuffed yourself to the point of getting sick."

"I told you! That waitress spit in my food!" the blue-haired boy shouted.

"Ugh, Black Star, not now," Liz groaned. "You're giving me a headache."

"Doesn't he always?" Kid asked.

"What's your problem?"Black Star sneered.

"Nothing, besides your insistence upon staying up until the sun rose," Kid replied.

Crona tilted her head. _Is Kid always so cranky in the morning_?

"What the hell are you complaining for? Way I remember it, you were all into watching girls take their clothes off."

"The unsymmetrical traits of those women bothered me," he explained amongst the cat calls and laughter.

As they finished they strange breakfast, the waitress returned, holding a tablet with the check on it and several little plastic-wrapped fortune cookies.

"What's your's say Black Star?" Tsubaki asked sweetly.

"_The monkey on the tallest branch will surely fall the hardest_...WHAT THE HELL IS THAT SUPPOSED TO MEAN?"the blue-haired meister growled.

"It means you should stop being such a cocky bastard all the time," Soul replied coolly. "How 'bout yours, Maka?"

"_Success is in your future_," she read, smiling joyously. "What about you?"

"_Soul is the coolest guy on the planet_. I gotta say, they hit the nail on the head with that one," Soul smirked.

Maka frowned. "Come on, Soul."

Amidst the mesiter and weapons exchanging insults and fortunes, Crona simply toyed with the slip of paper in her hand, tossing the cookie halves up to her black-blooded partner.

She felt a little nudge on her shoulder, and she found herself looking face to face with Kid, a small, quiet smile on his face.

"What does yours say?" he asked, his voice much lower than the others.

"O-oh, uh..." She fumbled with the paper, looking at the words printed in red. "_D-do not be afraid of new people and changes in y-your life._..What does yours...?"

"I don't believe in fortunes," he chuckled. "Not ones in cookies, anyway."

Crona gulped, mustering her voice. "I-indulge me."

Kid's smile vanished from his face, a strange pang hitting his stomach. He found the words tumbling out of her mouth incredibly...well, _sexy_. His eyes averting her's he split the fried cookie as symmetrically as possible before unfurling the paper and reading out loud.

"_A great misfortune will blossom into something quite the opposite_." He frowned.

"W-well?" she stuttered.

"Like I said," he shrugged, folding the paper, "I don't believe in fortune cookies."

"This place is stupid," Black Star sneered, throwing down the offending fortune. "Let's get out of here."

"I need a beauty nap," Liz sighed in agreement.

Shelling out bills on to the table, everyone got up from their seats, making for the door. Unfortunately, Kid had not noticed the way his chair was nearly tangled with Crona's, and neither had she. The shinigami, while graceful, wasn't expecting to catch his foot on the entwined legs, and the sudden presence of furniture sent him tumbling down landing on something rather soft.

His eyes fluttered open as the laughter of their friends sounded, glad that his chin hadn't bumped the floor too hard.

"Uh, uh, uh, uh, uh, K-k-k...I-I, uh, uh," Crona's voice panicked.

But it wasn't for his sake. It was for her own.

Kid's face erupted in fire as he looked up at the image before him, the situation cruel fate had thrust him into. Crona was sprawled on the floor, her eyes watering in the corners out of embarrassment as she looked at his face in nothing short of horror. His chin had fallen upon something unusually soft, and he soon realized that the "floor" he had fallen to was skin. The skin over the pinkette's lower thigh, to be exact.

Kid had never flown before, not really without aid or magical assistance. But that day was different. He body propelled off of her's, apologies spewing from his mouth in the form of cluttered letters, all incoherent consonants and vowels.

Maka rushed to the petrified girl's side, helping her to her feet.

Black Star clapped a hand on the shinigami's shoulder. "So you finally put the moves on Crona, huh?"

"Sh-shut up! What?!" the boy shouted rather childishly. Clearing his throat, he took a step towards the pinkette, an apologetic and morbid look on his face. "C-crona, I'm terribly sorry. Please, forgive me?"

Her face was practically buried in her shoulder, her mouth muffled as she whimpered something inaudible and nodded.

"Well, I don't know about you guys," Soul drew, stretching his arms over his head before wrapping one around his girlfriend's waist. "But I'm looking forward to that beauty nap Liz was talking about."

The friends took to the sidewalk, Kid trailing along the back with his weapons.

"Yikes," Liz uttered. "That was pretty awkward, wasn't it?"

"Aha hah ha!" Patty giggled. "Hey, sis, do you think Kid's going to act weird again?"

"Weird?" Kid repeated, irritation in his voice.

"And you know!" the younger girl added, "Kid had something bad happen to him just like the fortune said!"

"Hey...you're right, Patty," Liz nodded thoughtfully. "It was probably karma for saying you didn't believe in it."

"That's right!"

"No, that's nonsense," Kid muttered.

"Come on, Kid, haven't you ever seen '_Freaky Friday_'?" Liz teased.

Kid didn't respond, instead dwelling on his fortune. It had said that a misfortune would befall him...well, the situation was plenty unfortunate. But it said it would blossom into something quite the opposite.

He eyes the pinkette as she conversed with her cranky weapon at the head of the pack.

_Something quite the opposite_... he thought, feeling the fortune weigh down in his jacket pocket.

* * *

**Sorry about the epic delay guys. -_- Life and biz got in the way again. **

**And I kind of hate this chapter. But I was at a loss, so I hope you guys stick around for the next one (and if you enjoyed this one, then thank you!)**

**Also, reviews help me get better and sometimes boost me to want to do it quicker and get my butt in gear. **

**Peace, L. **


	9. 86 Seeing Red

**Hey guys! **

**So, I can't promise any more of the everyday updates but I'll try my best! And thanks to everyone who's still reading. And to KittyKatBite and kawaiicrona for reviewing! ^_^**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

**86. Seeing Red**

Kid never thought himself to be the jealous type, but then again, no one had really imagined that Crona was the flirting type, either.

The shinigami held his bottle tightly in his hand, watching her listen to some stranger at the bar alongside Liz and Patty.

"I don't know if I'd call it _flirting_," Liz told her sister, noting how Crona was doing next to nothing, besides shivering at the sudden and unwarranted attention of someone she didn't know or trust.

It was two weeks after the others had returned to Death City, leaving the New York City homestead to celebrate Liz's birthday with a tiny family of four. She had chosen a simple birthday activity: going out to a bar. Nothing extreme like what had happened when they traipsed around the city all night; just a few hours in a not-too crowded place she had been interested in when she passed it.

But this wasn't was supposed to happen.

It was supposed to be a night together in a booth, but when Crona had volunteered to fetch Liz another bottle from the bar, well...some man had caught her and managed not to scare her away. In fact, she actually seemed rather..._interested _in him.

Kid frowned, assessing the man. He was young, not much older than them. He had one of those letterman jackets on, black jeans, and a silver stud in his ear. He watched Crona open her mouth to speak, moving, yet Kid had no sound to add to it. For a moment, he imagined her being a mute, before he shook his head. _I'd miss her voice_, he thought.

"They look kind of cute together, don't you think?" the birthday girl asked, nudging the shinigami.

Kid shrugged. "I suppose so, if she's happy."

"Yikes, what's with the sour tone, Kid?"

"I don't trust him."

"What? Your shinigami senses are tingling?"

"No," Kid shook his head, pointing to the man in question. "He looks untrustworthy."

"Oh, lighten up. There's nothing wrong with him, I'm sure. And besides, Crona should practice flirting a little bit, you know? It could be good for her," Liz shushed.

_Ugh_, Kid thought. _My stomach is starting to irritate me. _

Kid looked at the empty bottle in his hand, deciding that if he was going to get sick from drinking, he may as well enjoy the moments leading up to it.

"I'm going to get another," Kid stated plainly, scooting out of the booth.

Breaking through the crowd of people milling about with bottles and glasses, he shouldered his way up to the bar, meticulously placed a few feet away from his pink-haired friend.

"Just a minute?" the blonde bartender asked as she swept in front of Kid. He nodded in response, listening in on the unusual couple beside him.

"So, you come around here often?"

"Uh, n-not really."

"Well, what brings you here then?"

"My f-f-friend's birthday."

"Sounds pretty sweet."

"Y-yeah..." Crona fidgeted with Liz's forgotten drink. "I-I should probably g-get back to my friends now."

"Wait, hold on," the man beckoned. "Why don't you come hang out with me a while?"

"B-but I don't want my friends to wo-worry or g-get mad at me..."

"I'm sure they won't mind."

"I-I really shouldn't..."

"Come on, please? I wanna spend some time with you, you know."

"B-but I don't know how to deal with-."

"Don't worry, don't worry," he said. Kid didn't mind that he was no longer watching from the corner of his eye. Instead the golden irises had been narrowed at the man as he lowered his face to Crona's level and tucked one of the longer strands of hair behind her ear. "You know, you're just my type..."

"B-but, I...!"

"Excuse me," a voice said with a terrifying calmness. The pair froze before the man stood up straight, a frown set like hardened, cracking clay.

"Can I help you?"

"Yes, I do believe you can," the voice stated.

Crona's eyes widened. _I recognize that voice..._

"K-kid?" the pinkette gasped, looking at the boy who had miraculously appeared beside her.

"Crona, is this man bothering you?" the shinigami asked.

"I-I-I...I don't kn-know how to deal w-with this," she murmured.

"I see," Kid nodded, turning his attention back to the man.

"Come on, don't you wanna get out of here?" the man asked, eyes pleading at Crona.

"I, uh, I..." Crona shook her head quickly. "N-no thank you."

"Aw, come on. What're you going to do then? Sit on this kid's d-?"

"She said _no_," Kid interrupted, feeling an animalistic feeling course through his veins. Unwittingly, he snaked his arm around Crona's shoulder, causing the young girl to tense up, her heart hammering in her chest.

The flirtatious man sighed, settling back on to a barstool. "I get it. You two are a thing, huh? I can respect that, I guess..."

Kid nearly blacked out, his head losing all weight at the thought. "N-n-n-no! NO! Of course not! It-it isn't like that!"

"Whatever, dude," the man drew, rolling his eyes. "Just..." he raised his glass at the two. "Have a safe night, you two."

From the booth across the bar, Patty giggled manically. "Hehehe! Kid's face looks like a tomato!"

"Tell me about it," Liz agreed, setting her chin in her palm. "I haven't seen him this worked up since we went to the pyramids."

"Why do you think he's like that sis? Can you hear what they're saying?" the blonde inquired innocently.

"I don't know," the older girl shrugged. "I mean, he sure rushed over there pretty fast. As soon as we were talking about-!" She slapped her hand to her mouth, eyebrows shooting into her mouth.

"What? What happened?" Patty nearly shrieked, leaning against her sibling. "Did I miss something? I don't see it!"

"Sh! Patty quiet down!" Liz shushed, clamping a hand over her sister's loud mouth. "They might hear you!"

"Mmhph mahhphmhm hm?" the girl's muffled voice asked. After her sister withdrew her hand from her face, Patty repeated, "Who might hear us?"

"Kid and Crona!" Liz whisper-yelled.

"So?"

"So, _look at them_!"

Patty turned her blue eyes toward the bar. Kid was still trying to get into a heated argument with the man who had been flirting with Crona, his cheeks red in irritation. Crona was still holding the frosty beer bottle in her hand, her head moving back and forth from the shinigami's face to the bar man's. And Kid's arm was still fiercely wound around Crona, who seemed unusually comfortable being held to his chest like that.

"What about 'em, sis?"

"Kid wasn't just thirsty Patty," the other girl led. "He was possessed by the green monster."

Her words were met with a confused look.

"He was seeing red."

More confusion.

Liz sighed, whispering behind her well-manicured hand. "He was _jealous_."

"Ohhhhh!" Patty clapped, laughing at the pair who were out of earshot.

Liz smiled at the pair as Kid settled down and Crona seemed to finally notice her proximity to the shinigami, her body spazing and apologizing while her stripped meister chuckled. The weapon sat back and thought.

_Maybe I oughta work on getting Kid more jealous..._

* * *

**Tada! ^_^ I hope you guys liked reading this one. I can't wait to get further in this story.**

**Peace, L. **


	10. 65 Horror

**Hey guys!**

**So, big, HUGE apology to those who have been waiting (and asking, too!) but I had a mega case of writers block with this prompt. I wanted to give up several times, and as a foreword, I doubt this one's going to be very good, especially since I'm itching to get to later chapters! **

**Special thanks to those who reviewed, as well as chasezx3 and Maniac Tenshi Makenshi for messaging me and getting my butt motivated. Serious love and apologies, you guys. ^_^**

**Anyways, on with it!**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

**65. Horror**

"H-halloween?" Crona asked a tad naively, looking up from her comfortable spot on her bed at the two sisters who had barged into her room. Aside from the hasty pushiness Liz and Patty had adopted, Crona also noted the layers of colored fabrics lying over Liz's arms.

"Yes," Liz groaned. A little smile pierced her exasperated face. "We're going out tonight, Crona."

"W-we?" the pinkette stuttered.

"Uh-huh!" Patty giggled. "You and me and Liz and Kid!"

"O-out where?"

Liz plopped down on the end of the witch's bed, grinning impishly. "It's Halloween in New York City, Crona, and I'll be damned if I'm going to miss a party _tonight_."

Crona frowned, hugging the pillow tighter to her chest, using it as a protective feathery shield keeping the hungry-looking weapon at bay. "I-I don't understand. What's so special about-?"

"Party! Hee hee!" Patty squealed, her eyes twinkling.

Liz scooted closer, setting a hand on Crona's shoulder. "Crona, Halloween is...important to Patty and I," the older girl explained gently. "It's our first time being back in our hometown and it was something that we used to look forward to when we were little. I used to take Patty to see the parades and people in costumes when it was just us. Remember, sis?"

Patty laughed in the doorway. "Something like that, yeah!"

Liz was, unbeknownst to poor little Crona, playing a very wicked card. The sympathy card. While she _had_ taken Patty along with her down to the throngs of drunk and horny Halloween prowlers, it wasn't to distract from their bleak lives. No, it was to pickpocket the wasted and steal from the gaudily-dressed.

"W-well, if it's important to y-you, I...I guess s-so." Crona managed a tiny, nervous smile.

Liz beamed. "Great." She threw down the piles of fabrics between her and the witch. "That means Patty and I get to dress you up."

"B-b-b-but! I-I don't know! I changed my mind!"

"Nonsense," Liz waved, hovering over the girl. "Patty, shut the door."

"Yes, sir!" the blonde giggled.

-interruption-

_No, no, no_, Croan thought nervously as she attempted to press herself further into the wall, to no avail. _Geez, this is embarrassing..._

Liz, who had ditched the young witch long ago in pursuit of some "tail"- though Crona had no idea what that meant; she figured it was some costume?- had finagled the eternally-nervous witch into a costume parodying her entire culture.

Crona tugged at the obscene witch costume, silently gripping about the short and impractical hem that fell right above her knees, leaving them exposed. Much to her annoyance, the top of the dress was just as revealing, practically strapless and all black, with one of those silly pointy hats on her pink head. Thankfully, Crona had been able to shrug a black cloak over her bare shoulders before the Thompsons, herself, and Kid departed.

Speaking of Kid...

_where is he_? she wondered, eyes trying to pick apart the crowd. She sighed. The place was too crowded.

"And everyone's in costume," she groaned to herself. "I wish Maka were here..."

Ragnarok materialized, knocking the hat off in the process. "Geez, Crona, why the hell 're you being such a little puss?! It's a party! Go have fun! Or better yet, go get me some food!"

"I'm not in a partying mood now, Ragnarok," she sighed, gripping her right arm with her left hand.

"Ugh, maybe that stupid perverted Shinigami would make things more interesting..." Ragnarok sighed, boring out of his little mind.

"Huh?" Crona asked, cheeks heating. "K-kid?"

"D-d-d-d-duh!" he spat, making fun of her stutter. "You've been fawning over the little maggot like a damn school girl!"

"I..." Crona clamped her mouth shut, embarrassment swelling in her chest. Had it been so obvious? She was only vaguely aware that Kid had some confounding effect on her, and the four-letter word she picked apart in the library was still swimming around in her jumbled, maddening mind. She stole her nerves against her weapon anyhow. "I am not fawning."

Ragnarok snorted. "Whatever, brat. Let me know when you plan on walking your puny ass over to the food table."

He receded into the confines of her costume, leaving the girl alone once more, engrossed in her thoughts.

_W-was it obvious that I've been spending time with Kid? But it isn't like I l-love him. He's my friend. I should be able t-to spend time with a f-friend, shouldn't I? Yeah. Heh heh, what's wrong with that? N-nothing. But what if it looks like I'm fawning over him. What does that even mean? Whatever it is, I don't like the sound of iiiiiiiiiit..._

"Excuse me?" a voice interrupted.

Crona's eyes, which had been screwed shut in frustration, snapped open, cheeks erupting in fire. "K-kid?" she asked, tilting her head to try and take a peek under the mask. "Is that you?"

He lifted the skeleton mask, revealing his familiar face. "Yes," he smiled.

"You...you're wearing the G-grim Reaper c-costume?" she stammered.

He sighed. "Unfortunately, it was the only thing I could convince Liz to let me wear tonight. She nearly threatened to kill me if I didn't dress up for the occasion."

"The occasion..." Crona drew. "All Hallows Eve."

"Yes," he nodded, leaning against the wall beside her. The young shinigami frowned at the people that groped at one another, grinding to the beat of some rather unsavory music. "Not exactly how I would celebrate it, but..." He shrugged. "To each his own, I suppose."

Crona bit her lip before the words tumbled out. "I-It's my l-least favorite holiday," she admitted, surprising the boy beside her. "But, then again, it's the only holiday I kn-know..."

"Really?" he asked, genuinely curious.

Her cheeks red, she looked up at the reaper. "Y-yeah," she confirmed. "Because it w-was Lady Med-medusa's favorite day."

Kid noticed a look of horror in the girl's blue eyes, and instantly regretted prying in any way. He could only imagine how tumultuous Crona and Medusa's household would be on such a night, with the history as dark as it was for witches. For him, it was simply a busy night for the adults he knew to be running about and stopping vicious souls from returning to Earth.

As the pinkette watched the party rage in front of them, Kid stared at her, a habit that had grown in the past month. He had grown rather protective of her as well, even venturing to put his arm around her more than once ever since the night he 'saved' her from the man at the bar. And, to his frustration, he had awoken in a sweat to dreams of the young witch in, shall we say, compromising situations.

But aside from his hormones, he took note of how Crona acted. And he knew that look on her face. The uncomfortable look on her face...

"Crona?" he asked, politely. She jumped at her name, even when it was nearly drowned out by music. "Would you like to go somewhere a little quieter?"

A small smile crossed her face, thankful, as she nodded.

The costumed reaper and witch snuck outside, reveling in the less-crowded (though still as loud) October streets.

Crona breathed a sigh of relief. "A-are you sure you d-don't want to stay in?" she stuttered, clutching her cloak around her shoulders.

Kid shook his head. "Not at all," he grinned, golden eyes sweeping over the web of gorgeous lights that illuminated the windows overhead. "I'd much rather be out here."

The two stood together at the edge of the sidewalk, admiring the city lights together. The scene was so unlike the one they were accustomed to in Death City. Their heads were angled towards the heavens, the lights making for impromptu stars that danced in their eyes. The city was colored by its people, who brushed by the silent couple without a care in the world, their escapades not even close to over, despite the hour. Crona and Kid were content in admiring. Both were watchers, he for symmetry, she our of curiosity. It was a perf-

_Ggggrrrrlgggg!_

Crona pressed her hand to her stomach, cheeks reddening. Kid couldn't help but laugh at her flushing face, the way she looked up at him apologetically, fearing she had ruined a nice moment.

"Crona," he proposed. "Would you like to get something to eat?"

-interruption-

"How are you feeling?" Kid asked, unbuttoning the thick shinigami cloak and letting it fall onto his seat.

Crona nodded, setting the white cup down on the table. "Th-thank you," she nodded. "Better."

Kid grinned, happy that she was comfortable. To be honest, he was rather glad about the change of scenery as well. The two resided in a booth in a much quieter shop, one that held a much smaller population and the music was tasteful.

The two sat in silence, listening to music and the dull chatter of people seeking solace from the insanity of Halloween, Kid's eyes watching as Crona's fingers tiptoed along the table in tune with the low music.

It was an old tune, from before he was born, but familiar. Perhaps he had heard it on a radio long ago, in the background of some place that was far more engaging. He smiled, setting the cup down. "Crona?"

She jumped, her fingers ceasing their imaginary symphony.

"Would you like to dance?"

"B-b-but..." The pinkette froze, fidgeting as she pushed her pointer fingers together. "K-kid, I don't r-really..."

"Please?" he pushed a little further, holding his hand out across the table. She stared at it questioningly. "I rather like this song..."

"O-oh..." Crona nodded, tentatively resting her fingers in the shinigami's palm. The two stood, moving towards the center of the shop, though they drew no real attention; the others who littered the shop were too engrossed with their own trivialities.

Carefully, Kid set his hand on Crona's hips, feather light as to not invade too much of her space.

"I-I've never..." She held her hands up, voice quivering in embarrassment. "I'm n-not sure h-how..."

_Ah,_ Kid sighed in his head, a knowing smile etching itself onto his face. _She's never danced before._

__"It's simple," he eased in a hushed tone. Crona shivered as his breath skittered across her cheek. He took one of her hands and set it on his shoulder, holding the other in his own. "We just sway back and forth."

"O-okay," she whispered, her voice barely cracking into audibility.

And they did so, waving in sync, the old song lulling their souls. Crona kept her mouth shut, but inside of her body, she could feel it: his soul reverberating off of hers, their wavelengths falling into harmonization. Her head lowered, pink bangs doing an excellent job at hiding the content smile and rosy cheeks as she listened, as she felt. All of it in time, all of it together.

Tonight was so opposite what she had encountered on every other Halloween. THe horrid laughter of her mother was drowned out by guitars and chatter, the terrified faces of the victims she would slay were replaced by smiling masks and outlandish theatricality, and the chilling grip Medusa held on her heart and mind were thawed by the warm hands of the shinigami.

Crona sighed, a little sound that did not go unnoticed by a smiling Death the Kid, as the unlikely pair rocked slowly on into the night.

* * *

**Sigh. BOY THAT WAS RIDICULOUS. **

**PLEASE NOTE! The song I was thinking of them dancing to was 'Knights in White Satin.' **

**I can't remember who it is by, but you should definitley look it up! SO AMAZING. It's the intro song from the 'Dark Shadows' movie and for some reason, it reminds me of Kid and Crona, so...! **

**Thanks for reading! ^_^ Until next time (which will be much sooner)!**

**Peace, L.**


	11. 71 Obsessions

**Hi guys! **

**Hope you're still following along and enjoying reading this! ^_^**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

**71. Obsession**

Kid smiled, his eyes shut, as the little witch in front of him pressed her nose to his.

Somehow, his fingers found his way to her cheek, brushing along the surprisingly soft and heated skin. "Crona..."

The shinigami didn't open his eyes once, not even when the pinkette's mouth locked onto his. He ran his tongue over her lips, gaining swift entrance as they fell deeper and deeper against one another. She moaned into him, sending shivers through his body, rivaling the fiery feeling that accompanied touching her.

He could see her, though, even with his eyes screwed shut.

"K-kid," she stuttered, though it was not out of strained nerves, but rather anticipation, his hands running up the skin of her thigh, running feverish circles as she-

"_Kid! Ki-i-i-i-id!_"

Death the Kid flung into a sitting position, gasping at the sudden, and rather disappointing, change in scenery.

Obnoxious knocking sounded at his closed door, accompanied by the giggling laughter of Patty.

"Kid! Time to wake _u-u-u-up_!" the girl sang.

"I'll be out in a moment," he replied loudly, before hearing the younger weapon traipse away.

As the memories of his rather..._interesting_ dream rushed back in his silence, he groaned, resting his face in his hands.

This had been happening lately, these dreams he couldn't control. They often spiraled into dark recesses, places that made him feel like asymmetrical garbage after he woke, though lack of symmetry was most definitely _not_ the reason.

He often wondered how he could face Crona after seeing her in such situations mere hours before- and there were _many_ situations-and act as if nothing had been the matter.

Flopping down, he buried his face into his pillow, contemplating how he would deal with this newfound problem.

It was a picturesque wish, her lying beside him in bed, among the blankets and pillows, her soul at ease. The confounding realization that dawned upon the groggy young man was a terribly simple one: he wanted her to be happy. He had seen contentedness on her face more than once, once in a blue moon, and he longed to see it there always. He could see her curled into him, tired blue eyes and small smiles. In his hands, the fingers that chased after fantasies, he could nearly feel her.

Kid shut his eyes, a soft pang of realization hitting him. The likelihood of that happening...

He found himself wishing he was back in his dreamland, where such obscene obsessions were possible.

* * *

**And there's that. ^_^ I know it was pretty short, and the next one might be as well. I've got a Crona chapter coming up next, where she kind of muses on wanting to be with Kid and the like, but after that, there's less thinking and more of them actually DOING SOMETHING ABOUT IT. THANK GOD. I JUST WANT TO GET TO CUTE FUN TIMES. **

***ahem***

**'Scuse me. ^_^**

**Peace, L.**


	12. 11 Memory

** Hey there! **

**Nothing much to report here, besides thanks for the kind words from chasezx3 and DigiScratch! So here we go. ^_^**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

**11. Memory**

Alone.

She was alone in the apartment, the sisters gone out shopping and Kid gone on an errand his father had asked him to run, something about seeing a death scythe about a budding kishin.

Crona winced at the task. She remembered how she and Kid had once been enemies, how she herself slowly being turned into a monster, a demon that devoured souls. It seemed like such a long time ago, like a tale that happened once upon a time.

The pinkette sunk further into the couch, gathering her knees up to her chest as she hunched over. As much as she wished it away, the memories of being haunted and locked away and the brutal darkness of her childhood had a habit of flooding her warped little mind, as if Medusa's snakes were coiling around her.

Terror began to fill her, like liquid filing a test tube, threatening to overflow, and all she could do was sit and wait for it to pass.

"Not now..." she pleaded into her clothed knees. Who knew when the others would be back? She had already made herself a burden upon Kid once, when he found her weeping in the bathroom; she couldn't bear to go through that again. Tears of embarrassment began their salty prickling, her heart beating faster in her chest.

However, the sudden ringing of a mirror startled her, causing her to literally leap into the air, yelping in surprise. At the beginning of a breakdown, she huffed and wicked tears away on her sleeve, managing to stumble to the bathroom, where waves rippled across the shimmering pane of glass above the sink.

As she ran her quaking hand along the mirror, his face appeared, a bit foggy, but grinning idly as he looked at her.

"Crona," Kid greeted. "Hello."

"K-kid!" she stammered, her body shaking for an entirely different reason now. "H-hello."

The smile quickly disappeared, his brows knitting together. "Are you all right?" he inquired, picking up on her foul mindset. Did he sound...worried?

"Y-yes," she piped, poorly concealing the little hiccough in her throat. "I'm f-fine."

He seemed unconvinced. "Are you sure?"

"Y-yes."

Kid sighed, looking at the ground a bit...guiltily, it seemed. Crona frowned as well; she had seen that look residing in her own reflection many a time, after...after...

She shook her head. "Y-you called for something?" the pinkette asked.

"Oh! Right, yes," he nodded, his mind startled into focusing once more. "It seems I've left Beelzebub in my room. I was wondering if you would do me a slight favor and send it to me?"

Crona made a confused sound. "Y-you want me to w-walk it there?"

"No," he chuckled. "You can just toss it out the window."

"W-won't it break?!" she asked, a bit taken aback. _That's kind of careless isn't it_?

"Not at all," he replied proudly. "It's designed to find me. If you just roll it out the window, there shouldn't be any problems."

Despite speaking to a boy who rattled her to the core, she deadpanned, "Kid, we're on the fifteenth floor."

He smirked. "It'll be quite alright, I promise," he quelled.

Crona smiled timidly, leaning on the sink. "O-okay. How is your mission g-going?"

"Fine," he sighed lightly. "My father was extremely apologetic about sending me out while I'm supposed to be on my own, but..." He shrugged. "It wasn't anything too troublesome."

The two merely examined each other in silence before one of them noticed the gap in conversation, that person being Crona. She jolted, her face adopting a reddish hue as she waved goodbye. "Heh heh," she laughed nervously. "Well, o-okay, Kid, I'll s-see you soon."

"Wait," Kid ordered softly. Her hand froze mid wave. "Crona, please..." He bit his tongue, looking a tad flustered. This surprised the witch. In her eyes, he was always so composed and together, words always clear and concise. "If you...if you're ever having a bad time..."

Understanding what he was talking about, Crona nodded.

"If you're ever having a bad time, please, if we aren't there, remember the good times, alright?"

Crona didn't respond, her mouth glued shut.

Kid cleared his throat. "Right, well..." The shinigami nodded. "I'll be home soon."

He disconnected the conversation, leaving Crona alone in the bathroom once more.

She made her way to his room in a sort of daze, her hand lingering over her heart. It had never felt so...wild and large. It swelled in her chest, in fact, each beat pounding on her chest as if it were trying to resuscitate itself.

"The good times..." she repeated to herself as she lingered in Kid's doorway. Spotting the skateboard, she unlatched Kid's window, and allowed it to fall into open air. As it did so, she bit her lip, the free-fall startling her, until it took off in a cloud of smoke, disappearing beyond the grand skyscrapers of the city.

"The good times."

She had had good times, hand't she? Of course, every moment she spent with Maka had been good; those moments made her happy, made her feel free. Spending time with friends had been good, with Black Star and Tsubaki, and Liz and Patty and Kid, and Maka and Soul. Learning along with Miss Marie and Professor Stein, as well. She couldn't forget the time they had all discovered the two were to have a baby together, and Soul had said something about some "messed up thunder stitched baby" being born. She smiled at the remembrance of the joke.

And then there was moving here with the Thompsons and Kid. How many times had Liz and Patty taken her shopping, just to dress her in silly clothing and spend hours laughing at the ridiculous things some shops sold? Or how she so enjoyed making dinner with Kid. She recalled one particular night they had burnt some complex dish to all hell, though a little pustule of tomato sauce erupted, splattering the both of them. Crona had been on the verge of tears until Kid had laughed...just moments before collapsing at the realization that the kitchen was messy. And then there were the days they four spent together, sight-seeing and going to movies and trying new foods together.

Or the time Kid had swept her into his arms when she had had one of those "bad times" in the bathroom, and looked at her with kind eyes. They were eyes that somehow understood. And how could she forget Halloween night, when she and him danced together. It was one of the calmest moments of her life, even after Liz and Patty interrupted them after seeking the pair for nearly two hours. Her soul had never felt so light or calm before...

There were jokes and memories that melded into one bundle that she couldn't possibly forget, no matter how hard she tried.

"Hey, Crona!" Ragnarok hissed. "How about we snoop around the little perv's room, huh?" He laughed deviously. "I bet there's some freaky shit in here!"

"No, Ragnarok," Crona said calmly, quietly.

"Aw, come on!"

"I said no," she retorted.

He tugged at her hair. "Stupid girl! If we're not going to have any fun, then get the hell in the kitchen and make me something to eat, will ya!"

"Ragnarok, ow! Cut it out!" Crona shrieked, making for the door. "Alright! Alright! Geez!"

As she was bullied into making a little snack for her bossy bully of a weapon, she smiled to herself, so low that Ragnarok, in his spiel about stupidity, couldn't even see.

With all that she had with her friends and all of the good times to remember, she had no intention of allowing them to become faded memories.

* * *

**Ta-da! So, I apologize now. It wasn't very shippy. ;_; I'm sorry. I tried but I got carried away. SO WE'RE FINALLY ABOUT TO GET INTO REAL RELATIONSHIP STUFF. IM SO HAPPY. Finally.**

**Haha, thanks for reading and don't forget to review if you have any feedback or comments or anything! Thanks!**

**Peace, L. **


	13. 53 Keeping a Secret

** Hey guys!**

**So...I'll be going to college in a few days so I'm doing all I can to write things in advance so all I really have to do is upload them. I love writing these stories and hearing from you guys but at the same time, stupid life biz gets in the way. -_-**

**In any case, this one is from the point of view of Soul and Maka, and it was something I wanted to try, so I hope you guys like it! ^_^**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

**53. Keeping a Secret**

Maka Albarn sighed softly as she snuggled into the nook of her boyfriend's arm, the weapon and meister lazily draped over their shared bed. As alive as she felt fighting and working hard, nothing was quite like the two of them lying together in the late morning on their days off, especially after such a wonderful night together.

With Soul acting as a sort of secondary Death Scythe to Lord Death and Maka shadowing Professor Stein in school, it seemed the two never had more than a few hours together, before they retired to bed, tired and ready for sleep. So, it came as a rather pleasant surprise when the two found themselves with a weekend off; Stein was traveling with Marie to another country in a wild pursuit of a new "specimen" while Lord Death simply was generous enough to allow Soul time away from the DWMA to, as he put it, "enjoy his youth."

And neither took it for granted, utilizing the night together to finally eat dinner- a _real _dinner; not just instant ramen noodles- together and participate in, well, various other activities.

Beyond Soul's scarred torso, she spied the mirror on the nightstand, the one they used like a telephone to talk to friends far away.

_That's right_, she remembered silently, her fingers itching lightly at Soul's skin. _It's Crona's birthday..._

As the white-haired boy stirred, he tightened his grip on the slender girl, hugging her closer. "Mmm..." he groaned, blocking her view of the mirror as he rolled into her. "Maka..."

The meister's toes curled as he buried her face in the crook of her neck, lips already working the magic she had grown oh-so fond of.

"Soul," she moaned tiredly. As much as she wanted to let it happen, she knew where this was going. His sharp teeth nipped along her neck, little bites marking her skin. "Soul." Her voice was firmer now.

"Mm?" he sounded, hands joining the work as well.

"Soul, I need to do something first," she mumbled, running her fingers through the hair on his neck.

"Like what?" he inquired huskily, lips trailing up her jaw.

She shivered, reluctantly pushing him away. "I have to call Crona."

Soul's red eyes bore into hers. "It can't wait?" he asked.

She shook her head, already sitting up. "No, I'll forget," she reasoned, feeling along the side of the bed for something to cover herself in.

"You forget something?" he chuckled, flopping back into the pillows. A little snort escaped his body. "As if."

She wrangled one of Soul's many, dirty band shirts over her head, pulling on some pants and raking her fingers through her hair as she plucked the mirror up off the nightstand.

Plopping down on the rolling desk chair, she dialed the infamous number. "42-42-564, whenever you want to knock on _Kid's_ door," she rhymed, rapping her knuckles on the glass.

Soul looked at her curiously. "I thought it was Death's door."

"Kid's a reaper, remember? This way works, and it makes sure we don't accidentally dial up Lord Death," she explained.

"Whatever," he smirked, snuggling down into the soft pillowcase. He pried open an eye to look at her, a devilish look shadowing his face. "But you know...when you're done with Crona, I'd like to have a little chat with you."

Maka blushed, smiling knowingly as the phone was answered.

"Hello?" Kid asked from the other end.

"Hey, Kid," Maka quipped. "Sorry to bother you but I was wondering if Crona was around?"

"Oh, of course, she's in her room," he nodded. "Would you like to speak to her?"

"Uh-huh."

The mirror shifted slightly as Kid handed the little mirror over to the pinkette in question.

"H-hello?" Crona began, her face brightening instantly. "Maka!"

"Happy birthday, Crona!" the meister erupted, flashing a thumbs up.

"You...you remembered?" the witch asked slowly, as if in disbelief.

"Of course," Maka laughed. "You're my best friend, Crona. I wouldn't forget."

Crona blushed. "Th-thanks, Maka."

"So, do you have anything planned for your special day?"

Crona shook her head. "Not r-really." Noticing the frown that suddenly crossed over Maka's face- a frown that threatened to bully every mesiter and weapon in New York if they didn't treat Crona to something special- the pinkette quickly diffused her. "B-but it's fine! Really. I'd rather s-spend a quiet night here."

"Okay," Maka huffed. "Well, I'll call you again later tonight, alright, to see how your birthday went?"

"S-sure."

"See you!" Maka waved.

Crona smiled, waving back. "T-talk to you later."

As Crona's image faded away, Maka sighed happily, turning to face her very eager companion.

"Now where," she drew, kicking off the chair and peeling her shirt over her head, tossing it aside carelessly. "Where were we?"

As she shrugged the last shred of clothing off, leaping into bed, their lips already became a delicious tangle between the sheets. It wasn't long before the sounds of early-morning ecstasy permeated their bedroom, teeth gnashing and tongues lashing.

"S-soul..." Maka cried as he lapped at a particularly sensitive area.

It was all right and fine, each lost in their mutual pleasure, until a familiar sound joined the symphony of sighs and moans.

"What the hell?" Soul's voice groaned. Much to their disappointment, the pair pulled away from one another, Soul tumbling over the edge of the bed, eyes locked on the interrupting device. After wrangling a pair of jeans over his lower half, he scooped up the waving mirror, grimacing into it.

"What?" his voice asked, sharp and annoyed.

"Sorry," Death the Kid's voice deadpanned, utterly unapologetic. His eyes shifted across the mirror, Maka yelping in the background.

"Soul!" she shrieked, diving out of the view of the mirror.

The albino-haired boy turned away, muttering something about not having to worry about her "non-existant chest."

"Am I...interrupting something?" Kid inquired.

"Kind of," Soul huffed hurriedly. "What do you want, Kid?"

"Ah, right, right," Kid cleared his throat. "I hate to make it sound as if I were snooping but I was wondering if I heard correctly: is it Crona's_birthday_ today?"

Soul nodded. "Yeah, it is." After a pregnant pause, Soul flashed a toothy grin. "You forgot, didn't you?"

"I never knew," Kid defended lightly. "No one in the house did, as far as I know."

"What?" Maka's voice called. Frustrated, she wrestled a shirt over her body once more, joining Soul in the mirror. "That's ridiculous. Crona would've told someone...wouldn't she?"

Though the legendary meister knew the answer to her own question, she was still convinced that maybe, just maybe, Crona had changed. Perhaps, in her time away, she had become more vocal, less afraid of being selfish.

"No, I don't believe so," Kid answered, surprising Maka. "Crona isn't the type of girl who would lay something out there like that. Not if it meant excess attention. She would keep it a secret..." He sighed to himself. "I just wish I had known sooner..."

"Alright," Soul nodded. "So we got everything here straightened out?"

"Hm?" Kid asked, as if he had already moved beyond the conversation. "Oh. Yes, I'm sorry to have interrupted your morning."

And the shinigami hung up without so much as a goodbye.

"Is it just me or has he gotten weirder since we last saw him?" Soul grumbled, tossing the mirror on the desk. "And what the hell was all that questioning about anyways? Couldn't he have called later? I mean, we were kind of busy here. It isn't cool to call at a time like-"

"_Ahem_," Maka cleared her throat, wrapping her arms around her lover's neck and planting a featherlight kiss on his cheek.

"Right, right," he smirked, leaning into her.

As the attempted to pick up where they left off, that annoying little ring scratched at their ears once more.

"Dammit!" Soul complained, grabbing at the mirror. He brought it close to his and Maka's faces, neither concerned about being polite any longer.

"What?" they asked in harsh unison as Kid's face materialized once more.

"Sorry," he quickly apologized, drawn back by their curtness. "I was just wondering what Crona would like for her birthday."

The two shot him an incredulous, agitated look.

"Are you serious?" Soul scoffed. "How the hell should we know what she wants. Ask her yourself."

"Now wait," Kid retorted. "As I recall you're her best friend, Maka, so I would assume _you_ would know precisely what she would like for her birthday."

His statement was enough to guilt the meister into racking her lust-hazed brain.

"Crona like poems," Maka proposed, rubbing her head. "And music, reading...oh! She loves spaghetti, and-!"

"There you go," Soul quickly interjected. "Take her out for some spaghetti."

"But I-!"

"Great idea, Kid. Can't wait to hear how it went."

"Now just a-!"

"Talk to you later!"

And with that Soul disconnected the mirror for the final time, yanking a drawer in the desk open and tossing the rather troublesome pane of reflective glass inside.

"Finally," he huffed, sliding it shut.

"Soul!" Maka giggled as he promptly scooped her up and returned them both to their previous state of euphoria.

* * *

**Sigh. It was more of an introduction chapter wasn't it? -_- **

**Well, anywho, Kid and Crona go on a sort of date, so that's going to actually be shippy and biz. WOOT.**

**Peace, L.**


	14. 87 Food

**Hey! **

**So, here's the sort of second part to the last chapter. I think I actually like this one (shocking) and I want to thank all of you guys for reading and following and favoriting and stuff. ^_^**

**Thanks guys!**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

******87. Food**

Kid racked his brain as he hurriedly flipped through the apartment's cookbook, looking for a recipe worthy of Crona's approval.

_It has to be perfect_, he told himself, fingers flicking paper blindingly fast.

_Lasgna, ziti, brocoli pasta, pasta putnesca, ravioli, perogies, pasta and basil sauce, pasta and tomato sauce, pasta with basil and tomato sauce, cold pasta, macaroni and cheese, tortellini soup, tortellini cold, bacon linguine, linguine with cheddar cheese, linguine with feta cheese, linguine with goat cheese, linguine with_-

"Watcha doing?!"

Kid shrieked, leaping away from the cookbook at the counter.

Shaking, he gripped the fabric over his heart. "Dammit, Patricia, you nearly scared me to death!" he scolded.

The blonde simply tossed her head back, laughing. "Ah ha ha, whoops!" she clapped. Patty took notice of the book open on the marble countertop, pressing her finger to her chin. "Ooh, what's this Kid? Gonna make us something yu-u-u-ummy?"

Straightening his tie and pulling himself off the ground, he sighed. "Not exactly," the shinigami answered. Scooping the book up into his hands, he began flicking through. _They've got every pasta dish in Death's creation in here but not a simple spaghetti recipe? Disgraceful..._

The situation, little by little, began to look bleaker and bleaker. His hopes of preparing something with his own hands for the timid witch were quickly diminishing.

He flung himself into his bedroom, sighing in annoyance as he sat on the bed. "It's fine. I'll just look a second time; I'm sure there's_something _simple in here..."

_Lasgna, ziti, brocoli pasta, pasta putnesca, ravioli, perogies, pasta and basil sauce, pasta and tomato sauce, pasta with basil and tomato sauce, cold pasta, macaroni and cheese, tortellini soup, tortellini cold, bacon linguine, linguine with cheddar cheese, linguine with feta cheese, linguine with goat cheese, linguine with_-

A knock sounded at his white door, soft and barely noticeable.

"Come in," he allowed, eyes still glued to the glossy pages.

The door creaked quietly. "K-kid?"

Immediately, Kid slammed the cookbook shut, hiding it underneath his legs. "Do you..." He took a breath. "Do you need me for something?"

She shook her head, opening the door a smidge further. "N-no." She twiddled her thumbs, looking at her bare feet. "Uh, well..." A tiny smile crossed her face. "I was wondering if you would mind if I borrowed another b-book from you?"

"Of course not," he shook his head, gesturing to his pristine bookshelf. "Go right ahead."

Her blue eyes met his, his heart kicking his chest from the inside. She crossed the room, and once her back turned on him, he exhaled in relief. She hadn't questioned about the book. He snuck the text out slowly, frowning at the print on the front. Defeat flooded over his reaper body; it wasn't good enough for Crona...

"Say, Crona?" Kid ventured carefully.

"Hm?" she sounded absently, her fingers skimming over book spines.

"What's your favorite food?"

Her slender finger halted and she turned on the floor, looking at him curiously. "M-my favorite...food?"

Kid nodded.

"Well," she began, looking up into her bangs as if the answer was written there. "I think spaghetti and meatballs...but eggs are good, too."

"Spaghetti and eggs?" he sweatdropped.

"Uh-huh."

Kid flopped back onto his bed, staring at the ceiling in desperation.

Startled, Crona began to stammer by his sudden falling. "K-k-kid, a-are you o-okay? Y-you fell so suddenly..."

On her knees, she scurried closer to his bed, peeking over the mattress as he groaned to himself about something she didn't quite grasp. "K-kid...?"

She yelped as she rose higher, finding herself face-to-face with the young shinigami. His face was totally placate, exuding utter defeat and exhaustion (yet with Kid being the drama queen that he is, she wouldn't doubt that it could have been over something trivial).

"Crona," he began lowly, their faces inches apart. "I have another question."

"S-s..." Her speech broke; the witch nodded instead.

"Would you like to celebrate your birthday with me tonight?"

Her heart froze in her chest, cheeks jumping from 'slightly above room temperature' to 'the fiery flames of hell'. "M-m-my, uh, b-birth...day?"

Crona internally slapped herself. It had to have been a dream...right? Nothing like this would happen otherwise. Why would someone want to spend time with her, her birthday aside? Her emotions wavered, leaping around like confused frogs.

"Y-y...yes." The pinkette shook her head fervently, a smile crossing her face.

Kid mimicked the look. "Wonderful. How about now?"

"N-now?" Crona stammered.

"Why not?" he shrugged. "It's nearly dinner time, after all."

"O-okay." Crona pulled herself to her feet, pointing towards the door. "I-I'll go get Liz and Patty."

"Actually, Crona, that won't be necessary," Kid informed her very matter-of-factly, casually dismounting from his bed. He joined her at the threshold, grinning with a conspiratorial spirit that the pinkette didn't understand. "I know it's a bit selfish, but I'd like to spend dinner with just you and I tonight, if you don't mind."

"I-I-I-I...uh..." Her hands flew to her face, her attempts at shrinking into her shoulders like a turtle shell failing. "I don't know how to deal with that..."

Beyond the cavern of her hands, she heard Kid chuckle. Every muscle in her body tensed as she felt his fingertips lightly latch onto her wrists, slowly pulling them from her face. She squealed at their proximity.

"You know," he began. "You really shouldn't cover such a pretty face."

_What the hell am I saying_?! he screamed in his head. _I doubt she's even remotely okay with this! I'm breaking the boundary lines. She's going to think I'm garbage. Speaking of garbage, did I remember to organize it? It's probably incredibly asymmetrical! No, focus! I should just pull away now and maybe she won't laugh at me. I know I can smooth this whole thing over by inviting Patricia and Elizabeth right now. Yes, that's what I'll do..._

"You..." Her fidgeting drew him out of his thoughts.

_She's so cute..._ he thought.

"Y-y-you don't...mean that..." she mumbled, her eyes looking anywhere but at his. "D-do you?"

His breath caught in his throat, before he straightened his spine, unable to help the smile on his face. "Of course I-."

"Yo, brats!" an infuriatingly familiar voice interrupted. "We gonna get something to eat or not? I'm starving over here! And Crona can't get much thinner, ya know!"

"R-ragnarok," Crona warned pathetically.

Kid let go of Crona's wrists- much to her disappointment, though she'd never say so- and flicked Ragnarok in his tiny head. In response, the black-blooded monster lost control, flailing his little arms around, screeching at the "reaper scum."

"Ragnarok," Crona whined, wrestling with her weapon. "Cut, ugh, cut it out!"

"You're just gonna let him flick me like that? What the hell, Crona? I thought you were my meister! I protect you, you protect me, remember?"

"But I didn't think it worked like that!" the pinkette argued back. "You always bully me!"

"Because you're stupid, stupid!"

"Hey, cut it out!"

"Ragnarok," Kid cut in, amidst the arguing and bickering of the conjoined weapon and meister.

"_What_?!" the weapon shrieked.

"How about we make a deal?" Kid proposed. "If you let Crona have a quiet birthday, taking as much time as she'd like, I'll stop by any place you'd like to pick up whatever you'd like."

Ragnarok hummed thoughtfully, his hands still clutching at the witch's hair. "Ugh. FINE. DEAL...But it doesn't matter how expensive!"

"Understood," Kid agreed, shoving his hands in his pockets.

The blob complied almost instantly, disappearing into the witch's back without another complaint, leaving the two alone in the doorway once more.

Kid began strolling towards the door, nervous behind that contented facade. "Well, shall we go now, Cron-?"

The shinigami was cut off at the tail end of his sentence, casting a curious look over his shoulder as a hand latched onto his forearm.

"Ah..." Crona drew, her eyes wide with surprise.

_W-why did I do that?_ she floundered. _Wh-wha..._

"Th-thank you," she forced out, hand still latched to his sleeve.

"It's nothing," Kid replied, smiling kindly. "You deserve to have a good birthday, Crona." He nodded towards the front door. "Let's go. I don't know about you, but I could go for some spaghetti."

"Y-yes," she grinned, nodding.

As the two snuck out the front door, sure to keep the noise from the Thompson sisters, Crona blushed with each footstep. The idea was unfathomable; someone wanted to spend time with her, give her something good. She didn't deserve it, she thought, not with all that she had done, all the pain she had caused.

Her stomach growled, the promise of the night nearly enough to fill her entire body.

* * *

**There's this one, but I love the next one. FOR SHIZ. WE GET SOME EMOTIONS. **

**Thanks for reading! ^_^**

**Peace, L.**


	15. 93 Give Up

**Hey guys!**

******Thanks for reading and reviewing and favoriting and all of that good stuff! ^_^ Now that I'm settled into college living and biz, I'll probably be able to update more often. I WILL FINISH THIS. I SWEAR.**

******Enjoy!**

* * *

******93. Give Up**

Crona flopped down onto her bed, a shy smile on her face.

Gathering her pillow into her arms, she sighed contently, relishing in the softness of the cushion she coddled.

Her birthday, for the first time in her life, had been celebrated. And she couldn't have asked for a better one, really. The two had taken the subway- something Crona had never experienced firsthand- which was something she enjoyed quite a bit. Despite the crowd that rocked to and fro while clutching at, as Kid put it, "horridly unsanitary bars," she loved the aura about it. Kid and Crona had managed to catch a tight seat on the subway, so close their legs were touching (much to her surprise and dismay). They had talked about quite a bit, too: everything from how they felt about New York City to the postcard Maka had sent her from Death City to the kind of cake Crona liked best.

After following the flood of people, up the staircase at a random stop, they found their way to a small, quiet restaurant, dimly lit and uncrowded, just as Crona liked.

Of course, once the food arrived, neither spoke much; they were too busy stuffing their faces.

On the way home, as the lights illuminated the sky as they did every night, Kid led her to a little bakery, where they picked up something to appease Ragnarok, as well as a little sweet for themselves. The way back to the apartment had been much longer, however, as they opted to skip the subway and idle their way through Central Park, their voices mingling along with the wind that brushed through the trees.

It had been a wonderful night that left her with a warm feeling gushing through her. Thinking about it made her squeeze the pillow tighter, her smile hidden by the pillowcase's folds.

Someone knocked on the door, breaking through her blush-laced recollecting. The pinkette pulled the door back, looking out at Liz's face.

_O-oh no,_ Crona worried instantly. _What if Liz is angry that Kid and I didn't invite her with us?_

To her relief, Liz simply smiled kindly, handing her a small mirror. "Call for you," she chirped.

"O-oh," Crona nodded. "Th-thanks, Liz."

Looking at her knowingly, the taller girl ruffled the witch's pink hair. "Happy birthday, girl."

"Th..." Liz began her trek to her shared room with Patty, Crona leaning out and calling, "Thank you!"

Liz waved over her shoulder, Crona withdrawing back into her dark room.

"H-hello?"

Maka's face beamed in the little hand mirror, her hand waving. "Hey, Crona."

"You...you're calling again?" the pinkette asked, settling at the foot of her bed.

"I said I would, didn't I?" Maka winked. "So, how did the birthday go?"

Pink tainted the swordsman's cheeks. "W-wonderful."

"Really?" the meister, piped. "I'm so glad."

"Uh-huh."

Maka quirked her head. "What's up? Did something else happen?"

"O-oh, uh, y-yeah," Crona nodded, the warmth spreading through her again.

Silence settled momentarily, before Maka led her further. "Like...?"

"W-well, Kid and I went to get spaghetti," she informed.

Maka's green eyes widened. "Just...just the two of you?"

"Y-yes. It was v-very nice."

"Crona..." Maka beamed. "Crona, you're _blushing_!"

"Wh-what?" the pinkette gasped, her hand feeling her heated cheeks. "B-b-blush...ing..."

"What else did you do?" the blonde interrogated, sounding much like some gossipy hairdresser.

"N-nothing!" Crona waved her hands. "Nothing ha-happened!"

Maka studied her best friends face, rubbing her chin. "I don't believe you."

"I swear, I swear!"

"Well, where did you go? Was it like a date or something?"

"It...it wasn't like that," Crona shook her head. "We went to a place...I-I can't remember what it's c-called..."

"Oka-a-ay," Maka nodded. "Then what?"

"Uh, l-let's see...we got Ragnarok some food..."

"_And_?" the meister led.

"And-and then we walked home!" Crona shook her head. "The t-two of us went through C-central Park."

"Crona," Maka deadpanned. "That's adorable."

"W-wha..."

On the other end, Maka smiled knowingly. She had known Crona for several years now, and Kid for even longer. He would never go anywhere he wasn't comfortable with without Liz and Patty, and Crona wouldn't trust just anyone to spend one-on-one time with. It wasn't how they acted; the two of them had seemingly grown...different. And it wasn't just natural change, the spreading of wings and all that. This was different.

This was love.

"So, Crona," Maka began, her plan unfolding in her brilliant mind as she went along. "What do you think of Kid?"

"He-he's great," Crona explained, leaning against the wall as she snuggled further into the mattress. That far-off look gathered on her face, that inexplicable smile returning. "He's so b-brave and put together, and he's always n-nice to me."

Gentler, Maka ventured, "How does he make you feel?"

"My h-heart," Crona stammered. "It always be-beats faster when he l-looks at me. And...and I get all hot and dizzy and I c-can't th-think straight." Her eyes shot open in worry. "M-maka, is there s-something wrong with me?"

"Not at all," Maka reassured confidently.

"Y-you're sure?"

"I promise."

"O-okay..."

"Why didn't Liz and Patty go with you tonight?" Maka wondered.

"I-I was going to invite them, b-but Kid said he wanted to spend the n-night with just the t-two of us," the pinkette explained.

This, quite frankly, stunned Maka. She knew Death the Kid was infamously to the point and honest, but, Death, that was straightforward.

"Just the two of you?"

"Y-yes. He apologized f-for being sel-selfish and said he said he wanted to s-spend time with me and h-him."

"That's..." Maka shook her head, leaning back in her desk chair, looking out her window at the beautiful nighttime of Death City. "Huh."

Crona grabbed at her dress sleeve, wrestling with herself over whether or not she should relay another piece of information. "M-maka?" she finally divulged.

"Yeah?"

"There's...one more p-part..." Crona looked away, afraid of being laughed at. "He t-told me I was...p-pretty."

Those had been the magic words, the ones Maka was searching for.

She just didn't think she'd ever hear them.

"What?!" Maka squealed, her desk chair rattling in the background. "Crona! Crona are you serious?"

Squeezing her eyes shut to avoid the attention as best as possible, the witch nodded.

The meister made a few shocked noises, babbling incoherently to herself before turning her attention back to Crona with startling motivation.

"Do you think Kid has feelings for you?"

The question threw Crona off as far as she could be thrown. She had thought about him quite a lot, but the reciprocation of it never ventured further than 'he's just being nice.' _Pretty_... she thought. Maka and Soul were in a relationship, and he had called her such things before. Things like 'beautiful' and 'hot.' She remembered overhearing them as Soul had held Maka in his arms, planting a kiss on her lips... she had felt so happy for them then. And now, the happiness she felt while speaking about the shinigami superseded that, tenfold.

"I-I...I don't know," Crona shrugged. Her eyes cast downward. "I d-don't think so."

"Crona, you _know_ Kid," Maka reasoned. "He doesn't just go around, telling people they're pretty. In fact... it's usually the opposite."

After a pause in conversation, Maka inquired, "Do _you_ like him, Crona?"

"O-of course I like him," Crona replied earnestly. "He's my friend."

"No," Maka shook her head. "I mean...do you _like_ him? Like being a substitute for 'love.'"

If the witch's face hadn't been red before, it most certainly was now. She quickly grabbed for her pillow, shoving her face into the cooling, concealing fabrics. A tiny sound escaped her lips, inaudible to Maka.

"What was that?" the meister wondered, squinting at the mirror in her hand.

A little louder, Crona answered. "Yes..."

"Aw, Crona," Maka cooed. "I'm so happy for you."

The pinkette lifted her head up a tiny bit, looking at her friend with pitifully watery blue eyes.

"Crona, oh, I'm sorry," Maka quickly apologized. "I didn't mean to make you upset."

"N-no," the witch shook her head. "Y-you didn't do anything wrong. It's just...I'm...Maka, I'm so scared!"

"Scared of what?" Maka asked gently.

"I've...I've never felt this way about-about anyo-one," Crona sniffled. "A-and he ma-makes me happy, b-but I don't wa-want that to g-go away. If-if he doesn't l-like me, and I t-tell him, th-then he might ha-hate m-me..."

"Crona," Maka stated firmly. She seemed so serious, yet so gentle. It had a calming effect on Crona, even when they were miles apart. "I promise you, Kid wouldn't hate you. He could never hate you."

"B-but, if-if I tell hi-him and he doesn't f-feel the s-same, I don't want him to st-stop being nice to me-e!"

"He won't-."

"H-how do you kn-know that?" The tears trailed freely down Crona's cheeks. It ached. The mere thought of Kid made her stomach ache, her heart ache. It made her want to throw up. She was nervous; more nervous than she had ever been.

Maka looked sullen. "I don't," she replied. "I don't know that... But even so, you'll never know if you don't try." Rummaging around quickly, the meister pulled out a worn postcard, showing it to Crona. "See this?" She pointed to little scrawling in the corner, in a foreign language the pinkette couldn't understand.

"Uh-huh."

"Know what it says?"

The young witch shook her head.

Maka smiled encouragingly. "The word is bravery."

Crona sniffled, setting her chin on the pillow. "I don't know how to d-deal with th-this..."

Maka giggled. "Take it at your own pace, Crona. And don't give up," her friend soothed. "I have to go now, but I'll talk to you soon, okay?"

"Okay."

Maka nodded once and disconnected the conversation, the mirror fading from color, to black, to reflecting Crona's tear-marked and reddened face.

_Pretty_.

The word swirled around in her head as she set the mirror aside, toeing her shoes off and letting them tumble to the floor. Snuggling into her pillow, she began to steady her quivering breaths, tired after the day's events.

_Don't give up!_

She wouldn't, she resolved as sleep began to grace her body. She wouldn't give up.

* * *

**I JUST HAVE SO MANY FEELINGS ABOUT THESE TWO. ITS BALLS.**

**Anyways!**

**I hope you guys liked it and if you have any feedback, concerns, and what not, feel free to review or message me. ^_^**

**Peace, L.**


	16. 60 Rejection

**Hi guys!**

**So, I'm pretty much weeping over the fact that people are reading this story. Like, I've gotten nearly 1.02 thousand views in August. SERIOUSLY YOU DON'T KNOW HOW MUCH I LOVE ALL OF YOU. EACH AND EVERY ONE OF YOU GUYS. ^_^**

** *sigh* Aside from me being sappy and emotional, I want to thank the reviewers and favorite-ers, too. You keep me writing more frequently and without you, I probably wouldn't be as far in as I am now. In fact, it would become a forgotten project of mine like a lot of others. So, thank you.**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

**60. Rejection**

It was a lazy Sunday morning in the New York City apartment. Birds chirped on telephone wires outside the window, the sun shone through the open panes, and Death the Kid was relaxing on the sofa, idly flipping through the television channels.

As the stations jumped from displaying 'Law & Order' to 'Sesame Street' to some show about the universe, Kid simply stared, his mind pondering far greater matters than why Oscar the Grouch was upset this time around.

Just days prior, he had spent a wonderful night with a certain pink-haired witch, who, ever since, had a habit of invading his brain at the most peculiar times.

Or all the time.

Yes, yes, it was all the time.

He had told her how he thought she was pretty- although since then, he longed to amend it with a word like 'beauitful' or something of that nature. But from there...where was he to go? It wasn't as if Crona was the most approachable person, especially when one wanted to admit some rather embarrassing feelings.

Kid's cheeks enflamed at the recollection of events.

In the midst of his channel surfing, _she _had stumbled on to the scene. The girl his heart lurched for.

"C-crona," Kid uttered in surprise as she lingered in the doorway of the living room. Her hands ran along the wooden threshold, her body timidly peeking out of the opening.

"K-kid," she stammered in reply. "I-I didn't know you were...out h-here."

"Yes," he nodded. "I was watching some television, but there's nothing on." He stood, brushing off invisible dirt from his trousers. "If you'd like the living room to yourself, I wouldn't min-."

"No," she interrupted. "I-I mean, you can stay...if you l-like."

He smiled a small smile. "Right." Plopping back down unceremoniously, he plucked up the remote once more, beginning another rotation of futile channel surfing.

Crona emerged from the doorway, making her way to the sofa as well. Out of the corner of his golden eyes, Kid noticed something familiar in her hands.

"You're reading that book?" he inquired.

She looked up, nodding. "Uh-huh. You-you said I c-could borrow another. I h-hope it's still alright."

"Of course."

Silence.

The two sat in sheer and utter silence.

Kid fidgeted, something he never did. He wanted to speak to her. He wanted to have her eyes fixated on him again; he wanted a decent excuse to drink in her face and figure. He selfishly craved to have her alone once more.

He cast a single glance at her face as she buried it in the pages of an old book of his. The golden irises fell upon her pink lips.

He wanted to kiss her.

Quickly, he averted his gaze. He was struggling now. Was this as tension-filled for her as it was for him? Another look told him no, it wasn't. Kid wanted to take hold of her chin and tip her face up to meet his and feel just how warm her lips were against his and-

_No_, he commanded. He didn't want this to turn into another one of his guilt-causing dreams, though it was certainly evolving into an unwanted daydream...

"He-hey, Kid?"

A strangled sound came out of his mouth as he was ripped from the rather pleasing daydream, his attention turning to the pinkette beside him. "Yes?"

"Are you alright?"

"Yes," he smiled nervously. "You asked me for something?"

"Oh." She nodded slowly, eyes wandering around the room. "W-what movie is th-this?"

Kid quirked his head, eyes running over their television screen. In all actuality, he hadn't the slightest idea. He must have stopped mid-flip once his mind began it's insufferable wandering.

The two silently watched, her question hanging in the air silently as gold and blue unified to take in the image on their forty-eight inch screen.

He had never seen it before; it was some unimportant movie, he figured. It had to be.

A petite blonde woman was half-naked on the glass of the screen, her hands roaming across a buff blonde man's bare chest. And she was singing. In such a state, both Crona and Kid instantly wondered why in Death's name a woman would be _singing_.

"I don't know what..." Kid shook his head, hand reaching for the remote control.

In an astonishingly massive change of character, he felt her fingertips lightly graze the hand that held the clicker, her hand still occupied with holding her now neglected book open. "W-wait..." she asked timidly. "I want to hear the song."

Kid kept the shocked musings held between clamped lips, simply nodding and turning his attention back to the T.V.

"_Touch-a touch-a touch-a touch me, I wanna be di-i-i-i-irty! _

_Thrill me, fill me, fulfill me_

_Creature of the night!_"

Crona made a little sound, an emotion Kid couldn't quite recognize. His eyes left the seductive people, head quirking in curiosity.

"Crona?" he inquired simply.

She nodded her head. "This song is...f-familiar."

"Familiar?" he wondered aloud. He had never heard it before in his life, this strange song from this strange movie.

"Y-yes." Crona nodded, nostalgia crossing her face. "When I was little, and Lady Medusa took me to the Witch's Council, there was a kind old witch who had a teenage daughter. The daughter was always singing this song in the back by herself." Kid nodded simply as she continued, mind caught in the memory. "I looked up to her a lot. Her mother didn't seem to l-like her very much, either. But she always sang it v-very happily."

"What happened to her?" Kid ventured.

The pinkette shook her head, shrugging. "Sh-she disappeared one day. Lady Medusa told me she was e-excommunicated when I asked." Crona lifted her head, looking at the screen intently. "Isn't it strange..." Her voice was dreamy, terrified...

The two continued to watch the movie, as it descended into odder and odder events. Kid only paid half a mind to the film, though. He seemingly always had one eye on Crona, as she intently kept her eyes glued to the screen, perhaps waiting for some other bit of memorandum to appear.

_She's beautiful._ _When did she become so beautiful? Why do I want to touch her now, so suddenly? When did this begin: my strange partiality for her? Why do I want to taste her lips? What do they feel like? _

The questions he asked himself were maddening, especially since none had any concrete answer.

Her frame...it seemed so tiny. Had it always been like that?

Her shoulders looked so breakable and fragile, like glass wrapped in velvet.

_How would they feel? Would they shatter if I touched them_? _If I put my arm around them_?

Of it's own accord, his arm began to shift, daring to wrap itself around Crona's shoulders and pull her closer. But it didn't follow through, only twitching uneasily, like a parachuter who was afraid to take the leap.

What would she do? What would she say? Would she comfortably lean into him, nuzzle her head into his chest and allow him to place a featherlight kiss atop the crown of her head? Or would she recoil instantly, repelled by his touch, going so far as to flee to her room, locking the door behind her? Would the outcome lie somewhere in between the extremes?

His flesh grew hot, sweat beading at his temples at the sheer enormity of it. He could do it.

He could _do it_.

His fingers snaked stealthily up the cushion, running along the back of the sofa, stretching out behind Crona. She hadn't felt a thing, she was oblivious to his arm's presence as it held over her. All he needed to do was move it a few inches forward, to let it rest on her body. That was all there was to do.

And he couldn't.

Yes, he could.

No, no way in hell.

But, at the same time...

No.

But she was _right there_, so close he could nearly feel her, really...

She would flee, wouldn't she?

She looked so inviting.

He couldn't do it.

Yes, he could.

Nope.

Yes.

No.

_Dammit_, he gripped internally, clenching his teeth in frustration. _This is getting tedious_...

A tiny laugh met his ears, drawing him out of his inner turmoil once again. His heart lunged, beating itself silly against his chest.

Crona's lips curled into a tiny smile as she tried to surpress a small bought of laughter, her eyes roaming along the screen happily. It was that picture he had dreamt of: her happiness there for him to drink in. Of course, it wasn't as he had imagined it, but this would suffice. She was so placid, her tumultuous past sheathed by the flashy corset of a deranged transvestite scientist.

He sat back, letting out a long exhale, calming his nerves. He kept his hand on the back of the sofa. He wouldn't bother her with his touch, not when she seemed so enthralled.

Kid chuckled in unison with Crona as the characters echoed one another's names repeatedly, his arm sinking further into the sofa back.

This was the closest he would get for now, on the high cushion, between the realm of safety and rejection.

* * *

**Blegh. That was painful. -_- **

**WHY CANT THEY JUST DO THE DO? ...soon, guys. soon. Haha, thanks for reading! You guys are the best!**

**Peace, L. **


	17. 35 Hold My Hand

**Hey guys!**

**So, I'm really happy everyone is enjoying this so far! Uh, I'm going to just compile a list of all the beautiful people who've reviewed in the next chapter, but now's not the most opportune time. SO DEFINITELY NEXT TIME! ^_^**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

**35. Hold my Hand**

_My hands are huge_...

Crona bit the inside of her cheek as she eyes her palms, eyes tracing the lines and grooves of her pale skin. They were so...big and clumsy.

How many times had she knocked into something with her hands, only to send it toppling over, landing in a ungraceful heap on the floor? How many blisters or callouses had she earned from holding Ragnarok in her hands? How many times had she cut her hands on a kitchen knife, only to have it quickly bandaged by Kid, who worried about the black blood staining his white countertop?

They looked that way now, an unseemly cut covered by a tan bandage. Her hands were rough, in her opinion. Tainted. Unloveable. She closed her hand in a fist, resting them both in her lap as she waited for Kid to appear from the back room of the dry cleaner's. They would have been out of there sooner, had it not been for some altercation that occurred on Kid's behalf, when he spotted something "wrong" with the clothing.

Before the two had disappeared through the door of the back room, Crona had shot the poor old manager an apologetic look on Kid's behalf, knowing just what this fellow was in for.

Finally, the voices settled, the back room door opened, Kid stepping out, fixing his tie.

Crona sweatdropped. _It almost looks like he got into a r-real fight..._

The shinigami smiled at the patient girl in the uncomfortable seat, the smile kind and comforting. "Crona," he spoke gently, his voice seemingly a bit hoarse after a certain yelling-bought. "I'm sorry to have kept you waiting."

"I-it was nothing," she insisted.

"Well, are you ready to go?"

"Wh-where are the c-clothes?" the pinkette ventured cautiously, looking around for the plastic-covered articles, though they were nowhere to be seen.

"The manager has agreed to redo them for me for a low price," Kid dismissed lightly.

As Crona chuckled lightly with him, she panicked in her head. _It's like he's a conman!_

"B-but wouldn't that mean...we'll have to come back soon?"

"Ah, yes," Kid nodded. "Would you like to go somewhere, then? In the meantime?"

Almost instantly, Crona agreed, though her reaction was small, subtle. The two had reached such a state now; he could pick up her signals when they were slight and timid, withdrawn and miniscule. And, likewise, she could feel when he was uncomfortable and needed to leave. The witch was tuned into his intensely-colored eyes, which she could usually read quite well.

This look, as the two strolled out of the dry cleaner's, was one she had started noticing more frequently, though it's meaning was still a mystery.

It was a bit chilly outside, the season's first snow come and gone, the promise of more lingering among the grayish white clouds. Crona clasped at the front of the jacket Liz had bought her (the weapon had insisted that the spindly little witch needed to "bundle up" in weather like this. She wasn't so used to snow; Medusa had always insisted upon living in warmer places), a little shiver raking it's hands along her skin.

"How's your hand?" Kid inquired as they went, footsteps falling in unison on the salted sidewalks.

"Huh?"

"Your cut," he clarified, pointing to the bandaged hand that was white-knuckling her collar.

"O-oh! Uh, i-it's fine," she told him quickly. After a moment of frosty silence, their eyes dancing with one another, she squeaked, irises ogling her shoes. "Th-thank you for bandaging it."

"Yeah," he drew. Such a tone was uncommon, but Crona didn't point it out, lest it lead to some kind of unwanted attack, catalyzed by the idea of perfection. "Say, Crona?"

She turned her head up to him, their footsteps slowing until they had stopped completely on the sidewalk, traffic maneuvering around them, like water around a Mississippi delta. "May I see it?" he inquired.

The request startled her slightly, but she nodded, slowly uncurling her fingers from around the soft fabric of her jacket. Kid pulled off his gloves, tucking them neatly into each pocket before his hands took hers, fingers running along the bandaged wound.

The pinkette's heart felt as if it fell into her stomach. His hands were so loving, so tentative. Strong, too, for a boy of no more than twenty... The warmth of them sent a shiver down her spine, the sensation a welcomed change on her chilled fingers.

"Your hands are freezing," Kid commented absently, his digits slowly roaming along the clumsy grooves and unattractive scrapes. Enveloping her hand in his, he held tightly, half-attempting to warm them up, half-attempting to remember just what her hands felt like in his.

"K-kind of..." she agreed distractedly.

"And your cut feels alright?" he asked.

"It was just a little cut," she told the shinigami.

"Yes, you're right," he agreed slowly, opening her hand once more, eyes roaming over it.

Crona's face heated up at the attention she was receiving; not just from Kid, but also from the passerbys who seemed to find the affectionate sight strange.

"K-kid, maybe we should get out of the middle of the s-sidewalk," the witch suggested.

As if pulled from a trance, Kid blinked absently. "Ah, yes, you're probably right."

The two moved on down the sidewalk, looking for an interesting place to seek solace from the biting wind, becoming a part of the blood that pumped through the city.

Crona was happy but something felt a bit...off. Her hand felt heavy and warm for a change.

Kid.

He hadn't yet let go of her hand. Instead, his right was wrapped comfortingly around her left, the hold startling her into ripping her hand away.

They froze once more in the center of the sidewalk, Kid ahead and looking confused. "Are you alright?"

"Y-y-you..." Crona stammered weakly, holding her hand to her chest. "You w-were..."

As if realizing it for the first time himself, Kid's face grew red. "Oh! S-sorry," he apologized, as bashfully as the shinigami could sound. "I sort of...lost track of what I was doing."

They merely stared at each other, before Kid waved at her to follow him. "Well, in any case, we'd better get inside..."

Crona bit the inside of her cheek. That tone...it was so unlike his usual, kind self. It was fake, masking something else. Disappointment?

"N-no!" Crona shouted at him, her voice carrying through the street.

He paused, looking over his shoulder in surprise.

"I-I mean, uh, y-you don't, uh, I-I, uh, um..."

_This is going nowhere! What am I doing anyways? He probably thinks I'm a freak! _

Extending her hand back out, squeezing her eyes shut, her face pinkened. "YOU CAN HOLD MY HAND IF YOU WANT TO."

The silence was painful. It was a gorge that swallowed her whole, enrapturing her body in a blackened pit of despair. That's okay. It was a place she was familiar with. The darkness wasn't unfamiliar territory; it was company.

A bare hand reached out, fingers intertwining with hers.

"Crona?" the voice questioned.

She squeezed her eyes tighter; so tight, they felt as if her skin would shred. "Hm?" The sound managed to strangle out from behind her clamped mouth.

"Open your eyes." The order was soft, close.

She did as the shinigami asked her, her eyes fluttering open.

He was so close...

That face... How much did she care for it? How often did she dream about it? How many times had it smiled at her from across the dinner table or slept soundly on the sofa arm or guided her through cumbersome dinner recipes?

Death, he was close.

"I don't know how to..." she trailed off, as he grew closer and closer, a knowing, teasing little smile on his face.

"Hey! There they are!"

Everything after that happened so quickly, done and over with in a flash.

Kid was on the damp ground before Liz and Patty had reached them. Crona panicked, making awful sounds that sounded like sobs and mangled apologies, half-realizing it was her that had shoved the all powerful reaper boy to the floor.

"K-kid...how'd you end up on the f-floor?"

"Hey! Hey guys!"

In the periphery of his vision, Kid exhaled, disappointment hidden from the sisters. He had been so close...

Patty giggled, bouncing up to the witch and shinigami. "Hee hee! Kid fell down!" she clapped rhythmically, hopping from one foot to the other as it became a high-pitched chant.

"Hey, Kid, how ya doin' down there?" Liz questioned, hands on her hips and her head slouching forward.

The shinigami sighed, pulling himself onto his feet. "Nothing, nothing at all."

"That's...not what I asked," Liz drew, crossing her arms over her chest. Turning to Crona, the older sister smiled. "So, what're you guys doing out in this part of the city?"

"D-don't you remember?" Crona stammered, fidgeting with the collar of her jacket once more. "Kid and I, we w-went to do the d-dry cleaning?"

"Oh, yeah," Liz drew thoughtfully. Wrapping her arm around Patty's shoulder, the older girl grinned. Crona gulped. Something about how Liz smiled lately...it was utterly paranoia-inducing.

Kid picked himself up off the floor, desperately attempting to ignore the flecks of salt that littered his pants and jacket. "_Crona_ and I were just _waiting_ for the cleaners to finish up," he said, a tad annoyed.

Liz smiled to herself. "Sorry to interrupt," she apologized half-heartdly. "Patty and I were just taking a walk."

Silence settled upon the four as they clogged up the congested strip of concrete.

"Well, if you don't mind, Crona and I will be on our wa-," Kid began, backing away from the sisters.

"Oh, that's okay!" Liz interrupted boisterously. "Hey! I know, let's go get a bite to eat, huh? Who's hungry? Crona, I bet you are!"

"O-oh, well, I..." Crona struggled, twiddling her thumbs. Ragnarok emerged from her back, banging his little fists in miniature irritation.

"I am! " the monstrosity whined. "Crona, let's go get some damn food already!"

"O-okay," she nodded quietly.

"Great," Liz clapped, turning on her heel, the salt crunching under her boot. "Come on, I think I know a little place up ahead that's got _great_ shwarma."

"That's the one by the nail place, right, sis?" Patty inquired innocently.

"That's the one!" Liz laughed pointedly.

The melancholy pair followed behind, less excited by the promise of halfway decent shwarma.

As Crona watched the cars inch forward, lost in the beautiful throngs of New York City gridlock, she left a soft tug at her bandaged hand, once again enveloped in a warm, foreign touch.

"You don't mind, do you?" he asked quietly, careful to keep the question from reaching the ears of his weapons.

Her eyes trailed down to the space that had been closed between them. There it was, his hand pressed against hers, his fingers carefully interlocked with her own. Divots and callouses and scars; she could feel them brushing up against her own. Signs of toil and hard work, two ugly hands melding into something that felt beyond beautiful. She had never experienced such warmth.

She squeezed his hand lightly, relishing in the sensation: the pain from the wound he had healed for her, the unrivaled warmth of another body touching hers, the selfish craving for more and more.

"N-no," she shook her head, dipping her head down to hide her bashful humiliation.

Kid relaxed, his stray hand digging into his pocket.

It wasn't exactly as he had pictured it. But this...

he squeezed her hand back, relishing in how she tightened her grip on him...

...this was just as good.

* * *

**So? I'm sorry everything's taking so long and if it's OOC. Frick. I love this pairing... ^_^ **

**Uh, let's see... I think I have a chapter or two...or three until they finally kiss woot! Haha, thanks for reading and reviewing and favoriting and following and all that good stuff!**

**Peace, L. **


	18. 20 Fortitude

**Hey guys!**

**So this one's going to be a short chapter with a sort of long author's note. But don't worry, the upcoming ones will get longer. **

**So, fun story, my computer decided to hide the original version of this from me, so I hope you guys forgive me for the wait; i was trying to snoop it out. BUT IT FOUND IT DAMMIT.**

**And, as promised, here is a list of the people I love ridiculously for reviewing: Milo the Vuplix, KittyKatBite, chasezx3, TheDoctorHatesApples, Katie, DigiScratch, Maniac Tenshi Makenshi, Kawaiicrona, and Mekino. And if I forgot someone, I'm terribly sorry. Let me know! Also thanks to people who've been reading in general and following and all that good stuff. ^_^**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

******20. Fortitude**  


Why was this door so terrifying?

If he could ask anyone in the world a question, at that particular moment, he would have asked that.

_Why was this door so terrifying_?

It wasn't necessarily the door itself, but rather what it was keeping him from or what lied just beyond it.

Kid stood rigidly outside of Crona's bedroom door, clenching and unclenching his fists in an exhausted effort to rid himself of his nerves. The poor boy, he had walked up to the closed door several times that day, only to return in pitiful cowardice back to his room, berate himself, and then repeat the process.

_No_, he scolded himself_. No more running away._

Death, he had never been this nervous. Not when he was using Liz and Patty for the first time, not when he first stepped onto the DWMA grounds as a student, not even when the time had come to fight the kishin, Asura.

No, those tasks had been easy. Not necessarily effortless, but they surely didn't make his stomach cramp and his heart pound and his throat constrict. It was the opposite, really. He was braver and faster and stronger on the battlefield than he was in front of some girl's door.

_Some girl_...

No, she wasn't just some girl. He was sure of that much.

His hand lifted, fingers knotted into a fist.

_Do it_!

After a terrible moment of total anxiety, his hand fell, he stole his breath, and he turned, rushing back to his room.

Kid slammed the door behind his back, sinking to the ground.

"I'm pathetic," he began to loath, setting his forehead on his knees. "Absolute garbage..."

Why was this so damned difficult? The men in the movies Liz would insist they play always asked females out in the simplest of manners; so off-handedly, he could've been commenting on the weather. They never showed signs of fear, their hands never shook, and their bodies never seemed to be plagued by an immortal tremor that accompanied the thought of their lover's face.

In every scenario he ran through his head, she would smile at him. Even if she was going to reject him completely, she would always smile. That killed him. It made his head dizzy. He, to use her own words, didn't know how to deal with it.

But..._would_ she reject him?

Opening the door the slightest bit, just enough to peek through into the hallway, Kid could see her door. That cursed door that taunted him, laughed at him.

He was like some Greek soldier in the _Iliad_, beating against the unmovable, unrelenting fortitude of the walls of Troy. She was so close. His princess was there, on the other side, trapped inside her Trojan bedroom.

He squinted at the snarling barricade, accepting its challenge once again.

Crawling to his feet, brushing his jacket off, he left the comfort and safety of his room behind.

She might have been on the other side of Troy's great walls, but she _wasn't_. This wasn't Troy, it was New York City. And that wasn't a wall, it was a _door_. One that would open to anyone's will.

And he would be damned if she wasn't something worth fighting for, even if the enemy was a hunk of wood, painted over with white acrylic.

Yes, that was it.

He was going to do it.

Any moment now, he would knock on her door.

His hand lifted.

A lock clicked.

And...he froze.

"Oh," Crona said quietly, a bit surprised. "H-hi, Kid."

Noticing his fist still frozen in mid air, just above her head, he cleared his throat nervously, letting it fall behind his back.

"Ah, Crona..." he began slowly. _Maybe it isn't too late to turn back..._

"Did you need someth-thing?" she interrupted, opening the door a bit more.

The shinigami stole himself. _Don't look at her face_, he coached. _You'll pass out_.

His eyes wandered around, sweeping over her chest once.

_Not there! She'll think you're perverted!_

Kid clamped his eyes shut, feeling the heat swirl underneath his skin like magma stirring beneath the rocky Earth.

"Crona," he forced out, stomach twisting into one big, horrible knot. "I...I was hoping...I wanted to ask you...a q-question... ."

"O-okay," the girl stammered, giving him the go-ahead to continue his broken speech.

"W-would you...that is, with me...g-go out with..." Kid's lips sealed instantaneously, embarrassment flooding him, threatening to spill over in a catastrophic self-loathing meltdown.

"_Dammit_," a shrill voice hissed. Exploding from the witch's back, the black-blooded weapon groaned, resting on Crona's pink dome. "Spit it out will ya, you pathetic brat?"

"P-pathetic...?" Kid squeaked, looking at the monster with a piteous face.

"Ragnarok!" Crona warned with a strong, quiet voice.

"What? The kid's taking forever and a goddamn day to talk to ask you out!" the blob argued.

"A-ask me..." Crona's eyes exploded as she pushed at her weapon. "D-don't say that! You don't think he'd be th-that c-crazy, would y-you?"

"Of course he is!" Ragnarok argued back, tugging at Crona's collar. "The stupid reaper's been hanging around you all week! The moron even tried to _kiss _you!"

"K-k-ki...no! Th-that's not what h-happened! I'm s-sure that's not what he was t-trying to d-do!" the pinkette shouted. "Remember what you said? You said 'who the hell would go out with a ps-sycho like you'!"

Kid slowly raised his hand, eyes clamped shut.

And very slowly, the argument quieted down, one syllable at a time, until the weapon and meister were frozen mid-fight.

"K-kid?" Crona ventured, quirking her head.

"What the hell's your hand up fo- _DAMMIT CRONA. HE'S GONNA REAPER CHOP US. QUICK CLOSE THE DOOR. CLOSE THE DAMN DOOR YOU STUPID GIRL._"

Yelping at the command of her weapon, Crona's hand flexed at the doorknob, pushing the door shut.

However, the barricade stuck just a few inches from the threshold, Kid sticking his head against the opening.

"That's not what, ugh, I was going to do," he reasoned through gritted teeth.

"Th-then why do you sound so m-mad?" she questioned. Following his eyes down to the foot that was been squished between the door and it's frame, Crona gasped, relaxing her forceful hold on the knob. "S-sorr-."

"Crona," Kid interrupted, voice on the cusp of being uneven. "I'm sorry, but I've got to ask now or I'll clam up again."

Straightening his tie, he took a deep breath.

_Maybe it isn't too late to run away_...

He looked at the witch's eyes. So expectant, so full of wonder... They were the eyes he wanted. The ones he wanted to please. He remembered now, the dream he wished were a reality. The princess on the other side of the wall.

"Would you like to go out with me?"

"S-sure," Crona nodded, jutting her thumb over her shoulder. "I'll get my c-coat."

"No, that's not what I mean," Kid shook his head.

"..."

He went on. "I mean, would you like to go on a date with me?"

"A...date?"

"Yes."

Kid cocked his head curiously as she hunched over, her pointer fingers pushing against one another. Her bare foot toed circles in the carpet in a futile attempt to rid her body of nerves.

"Um...uh...d-does that m-mean...it'll be just m-me and you?"

"Yes," he grinned.

A blush flickered across her face as she averted her eyes. "A-and, uh...d-does that mean it's...romantic?"

The poor girl, she was practically doubled over, in attempts to hid her reddening face from the shinigami.

He smiled, body relaxed. _So, she's nervous about this, too_...

Kid bent his body, craning his head down to her level, peeking through the strands of pink that hung over her face.

"That's exactly what it means."

* * *

**Eh, so like I said, not too long. I'm excited to write the next handful of chapters. Dates and cute things and la la la. ^_^**

**Let me know what you think! And thanks for reading!**

**Peace, L. **


	19. 45 Illusion

******Hey guys!**

**Sorry for the unexpected hiatus. It's annoying, since I really want to be able to update these more frequently and fluidly (instead of in weird chunks), but life happens. What're you gonna do? *shrugs***

**Also, thanks to chasezx3 for messaging me with the encouragement. That's always a sure-fire way to get my ass in gear again. ^_^**

**Anyways, here we go!**

******Enjoy!**

* * *

**45. Illusion**

Crona frowned, looking at her image in the mirror.

"Well?" Liz's expectant voice asked from the other side of the dressing room door. "How does it look?"

"F-fine, I guess," Crona stammered, tilting her head from side to side.

_Why did I let them t-talk me into this anyway_? the pinkette grumbled to herself, tugging at the dress-the seventh dress-she had been forced into by the Thompson sisters. This particular piece of clothing was blue with those teensy sleeves she wasn't very fond of. Besides, it was getting colder and colder outside; you would think they would want her to stay _warm_, not catch a cold!

"Come on out and let us see it, Crona!" Liz goaded for, again, the seventh time that afternoon.

With a sigh and a steeling of nerves, Crona unlatched the door, padding across the dirty tiled floor of an expensive boutique.

"Oh, I like that one," Liz nodded, snuggling the dozens of other options in her arms.

Crona flinched at the sight of them. _Th-those are new. She's not going to make me try on all of them...i-is she?_

"What do you think Patty?" the older sister inquired.

Patty pressed her finger to her lip thoughtfully. "Hm...Crona looks kinda li-i-i-ike...lamp."

"A l-lamp...?" Crona repeated, shuffling from foot to foot. She tugged at the strap as it fell off her slight, pointed shoulder.

"Yeah...yeah, I guess it kind of does, right? The one from that old lady's house?" Liz nodded, speaking of a person the young witch had never met.

Patty laughed boisterously. "Yep! That's the one!"

"Yeah, I think you're right," the older weapon drew, sifting through the pile in her arms. "Besides, I don't know if light blue is really Crona's color, huh?"

"Uh-uh."

"Yeah..." Liz nodded to herself. "She's better suited for dark colors, don't ya think?"

Crona relaxed slightly. She had always had a fondness for dark colors. They made her feel comfortable.

Liz tore a long piece of some soft black fabric from the bundle, throwing it into Crona's arms. "Try that one."

"B-but, don't you th-think we've tried enough...on...?" Crona stuttered.

"Oh, come on. Humor us?" Liz smiled, waving her hand dismissively. She jumped up from the bench, nudging the witch back into the dressing room. "Please? Just one more."

"W-well, okay...I guess I could-."

"Great!"

Taking a final nudge to the back, Crona stumbled into the dressing room, carefully locking the door behind her.

As she slid the dress off her thin frame, she called out to the sisters that waited on the other side.

"S-so, Liz?"

"Yeah?"

"T-today is your shopping day, right?"

"That's right."

"W-well, if it's a shopping day for you and P-patty, then wh-why'd you take me with you?"

There was a slight pause and, for a moment, Crona stood in stark uncertainty, the new garment clutched in her fingers.

_What if I said something to upset her? Oh, no... I-I was just asking a question. Oh...maybe if I apologize right now, she'll still be my friend. I should-_

"Don't be silly, Crona," Liz giggled, surprising the pinkette. "We took you here because we wanted you to be here. We _like_ hanging out with you."

"You...you do?"

"Of course!"

"Crona shouldn't think that people don't want to hang out with her," Patty added, very childishly, yet eloquently.

The pinkette smiled to herself as she slowly shrugged the dress over her head and down her body.

"Plus," Liz's voice sounded, though much quieter and in a gosspiy tone, "it's always nice to dress up for a first date."

With the dress half obscuring her heating face, Crona felt dizzy. _They knew_?!

"Y-you know!?" Crona shouted, wrangling the garment over her head with a speed she didn't know she was capable of reaching. Throwing the door open, she looked at a shocked pair of weapons. "H-how did you... ."

"Don't worry, Crona," Liz began smiling.

The witch shot her a disbelieving face.

Rolling her eyes playfully, the older weapon shook her head. "To not know something was going between you and Kid, Patty and I would have to be blind."  
Her words only made the pinkette's face grow hotter. No, no, _searing_ was a better word for it. "W-w-wa-was it th-that obvious?"  
Panicked, without a snug little corner to back into or a comforting pillow to throw her face against, she hid behind her long fingers, trying her best to disappear into her non-existent turtle shell.  
"Oh, Crona..." Liz hummed, rustling beyond the confines of the witch's fingers. The younger girl felt a tentative hand on her shoulder and back, making her tense, then relax the slightest. "It's nothing to be embarrassed about. Really."  
Slowly, Crona peered out from behind her flesh shield. "R-really?"  
"Mm-hmm," Liz nodded reassuringly. "I mean, why would we take you shopping for fancy clothing if we didn't wanna help, huh?"  
"I...I guess," Crona shrugged bashfully.  
Taking a few steps back, Liz smiled brightly, her hands on her hip in a motherly fashion. "And, hey, this one doesn't look half bad."  
Quirking her head, the pinkette shot the weapon a confused look.  
As Patty giggled, Liz waved towards the dressing room encouragingly. "Go look at yourself."  
Taking a few cautious steps back into the cubicle, Crona eyed herself. Well, for one thing, it was certainly fancy. The black fabric clung to her body, stretching down the length of her legs and pooling around her bare feet. The collar of the dress climbed up her neck, instead of down, but was left open in the back after her hasty dressing, right above a tear-drop gap exposing her spine.  
"Here," Liz interjected. "Let me zip you up... ."  
The pinkette fiddled with her fingers as the older girl toyed with her dress, before Liz allowed Crona to see her in finality.  
"I-it looks n-n-nice..." Crona trailed off absently.  
"I'm glad you think so," Liz grinned, folding her arms.  
Patty clapped in approval, as the sisters shouted in unison, "_We'll take it_!"  
"Hey, that thing's a little long on you, there, Crona," Liz mentioned, pointing to her feet. Turning her head towards the front counter, where the all-too-edgy clerks sifted through magazines, she added, "And we're going to need some shoes, too."

-interruption-

Kid fidgeted uneasily at the front entrance of the apartment.  
_I can't believe they made me wait outside in the snow_, he lamented bitterly, watching strangers pad along the salted sidewalks. _Honestly, it isn't as if we're getting married or anything...  
_His eyes trailed along the streetlights, all bright and decorated with healthy green wreathes and red ribbons, the glass orbs barely dusted with the evening ice. These sights, these lights...they had an oddly calming effect on him.  
_Death, I'm nervous_...  
The low squeak of the brass and metal doors swinging open drew him from his own thoughts, though the sharp and shrill clacking that followed surprised him.  
One foot came out first-a black high heel. _No_, he thought, turning his attention back to the orbs dotting the street. _That isn't her_.  
The short, stilted clacking continued for a short time, before halting nearby.  
"Ah...K-kid?"  
The shinigami tensed, turning his head at break-neck speed. The clacking, the heels...  
Well, this was very surprising.  
"Crona!" he breathed, kicking off from the wall of the complex. "You look so..."  
Crona looked away, eying the chunks of sea salt on the ground.  
Pressed against the glass of the doorway, Liz and Patty stole themselves, waiting for the compliment to tumble out.  
"...tall," Kid remarked.  
"Yikes," Liz groaned, covering her eyes with her hand.  
"T-tall?" Crona repeated.  
"Well, yes," Kid nodded, eyes scaling the significantly higher girl. "You seem so much taller."  
"O-oh, y-yeah," Crona stammered, gesturing to her feet. "L-Liz told me to w-wear these."  
Kid shot her a quizzical look. "Why?"  
The witch fiddled with wringing her hands. "W-well, the d-dress is t-too long, a-and they didn't want me to drag it th-through the dirt and Liz told me th-that you have to dress up n-n-nice on dates, so..." Her eyes found his unexpectedly, before she quickly ducked her head. "D-do you..." She couldn't bring herself to finish the sentence, no matter how much Liz had instructed her to ask.  
"Do I...like it?" Kid ventured, leaning to attempt to see her pink face. She nodded. "Of course I do."  
Slowly, she inched out from her turtle shell. "Y-you...you do?"  
"Yes," Kid confirmed. "It's very pretty." Moving in closer, he added, "Though I like you the way you are normally."  
This, in the simplest terms, threw Crona into a fit.  
"Y-y-you d-do, I-I mean-like me th-the way-I don't know how to deal with th-th-that...b-b-but th-thank you, uh, I-I think, and m-m-maybe I should go get d-dressed in something el-."  
"Crona." Kid's voice was soft and sturdy, and it did a fine job in ceasing her conniption. "You look lovely."  
Her face softened slowly, though the heat never left her face. "I...th-thank you..."  
And then she felt it-the tug on her hand, his fingers slowly tangling with her own-and she couldn't help the small smile on her face.  
"Come on," he nodded.  
"Okay," she replied.  
They turned, taking a few steps at a time, Crona wobbling in her shoes.  
And the pinkette, in all of her black-tie glory, fell with a mighty smack on the pavement.  
"On second thought," Kid suggested as he helped the quivering girl back to her feet, "maybe we ought to get you a different pair of shoes."

* * *

**Blegh. **

**So anyways, the next chapter will hopefully be up soon. It's going to finally get shippy-dippy in here, on their for shiz date. But I've also taken up RPing as Crona, and NaNoWriMo is coming up, and school (but who needs that, really?) so I might be a little behind. Sorry for making people wait. I LOVE WRITING THIS BUT SOMETIMES I GET WRITERS BLOCK AND SICK AND IT SUCKS B.**

**Peace, L. **


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